^^^^^^^^^^^^ 




^ 




READINGS IN 
INDIANA HISTORY 


m 


III II II IBI^HII 


COMPOLEO AND EDITED BY 

A COMMITTEE OF THE HISTORY SECTION OF T»E 
INDIANA STATE TEACHERS' ASSOCIATION 






Class _JLL__L 

Book I 5*7 

GopjTiglitN^ 

COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT 



I 



READINGS IN INDIANA HISTORY 



W^ V- 



INDIANA UNIVERSITY: EXTENSION DIVISION 



READINGS IN INDIANA 

HISTORY 




Compiled and Edited by 

A COMMITTEE OE THE HISTORY SECTION OF THE 
JNDIANA STATE TEACHERS' ASSOCIATION 

Logan Esarey Clarence V. Haworth 

Mattie B. Lacev Christopher B. Coleman 

James A. Woodburn Adelaide Steele Baylor 
Oscar H. Williams, Chairman 



Bloomington, Indiana 
PUBLISHED BY INDIANA UNIVERSITY 

1914 



S7 



Copyright, 1914 
By Indiana University 



• •• 
• •• 



JCT2 1914 

©CI,A379838 



o- 



Foreword 



Following the instructions of the History Section, the 
committee has sought to render available for teachers and 
pupils in the public schools the best original or firsthand 
materials for some study of Indiana history. It has so 
grouped and arranged the selections as to suggest the main 
outlines of the State's development, and, at the same time, 
by means of introductory comments, has attempted to sup- 
ply the historical setting and to weave the parts into a con- 
nected whole. 

The materials here set out are, it is the belief of the 
committee, best adapted to pupils of the grammar grades 
and the high school, although teachers of the lower classes 
will find suggestive matter for stories or talks for the chil- 
dren. It has been the aim in all cases to preserve the exact 
language and form of expression of the original, though 
for the sake of clearness and grammatical propriety occa- 
sional changes were introduced into the text. Children, as 
w^ell as grown-ups, are fond of the quaint and sometimes an- 
tiquated mode of expression with which the sources abound. 

Care has been taken to give, in connection with the title 
of every selection, the exact citation or reference, so that 
teachers who are interested in fuller elaboration than is af- 
forded by the limited selection may readily find the entire 
account. The date of the composition is always given in 
connection with the name of the writer, and effort made in 
all cases clearly to make the distinction between the date of 
the writing and the time referred to in the selection. 

The committee wishes to acknowledge its indebtedness 
to many persons who in a fine spirit of co-operative help- 
fulness have contributed to the success of its work. Espe- 
cially is it under obligation to Dr. Logan Esarey, Secretary 



6 Readings in Indiana History 

of the Indiana Historical Survey, a member of the commit- 
tee, for his counsel on the plan of arrangement and his val- 
uable insight embodied in the editorial comment ; to Mr. 
Harlow Lindley, Director of the Department of Indiana 
History and Archives, for his assistance in the search for 
materials ; to Dr. S. B. Harding, Professor of European 
History in Indiana University, for his many suggestions on 
the form and mechanical structure of the book; to many 
authors and publishers for their courtesy in permitting the 
use of abstracts from their books ; and to the Extension Di- 
vision of Indiana University for undertaking the publica- 
tion of the volume. 

OscAK H. Williams, 

Chairman. 



Contents 



t 



PART I. INTRODUCTORY. 

PAGE 

1. Historical Survey 15 

2. Suggestions to Teachers 16 

PART II. AN INDIAN COUNTRY, 1765 TO 1816. 

Chapter I. 

3. Introductory Sketch 19 

Chapter II. 

Indiana When Englishmen First Came. 

4. The Forests 21 

5. Surface and Rivers 23 

6. The Miami Indians 25 

7. Distribution of the Miamis 26 

8. Natives of the Wabash Country 27 

9. Pottawattomie Story of How the Indian Race Began 29 

10. Shawnee Tradition of Indian Origins 30 

11. Indian Life and Customs: Training of Indian Youth 31 

12. Indian Lite and Customs: On the Warpath 32 

13. Indian Ceremony of Adoption 34 

14. The French in Indiana: Post Vincennes 36 

15. The French in Indiana: Ouiatanon 38 

16. The French in Indiana: At the Miami Village 40 

17. French Life on the Wabash 41 

Chapter III. 
George Rogers Clark Conquers the Northwest. 

18. Clark Prepares for the Expedition (1777) 49 

19. Desertion at the Ohio Falls 50 

20. Capture of Kaskaskia 52 

21. Father Gibault's Mission to Vincennes. . ." 54 

22. Capture of Ouiatanon 55 

23. Vincennes Retaken by the British 56 

24. Clark Moves on Vincennes 59 

24a. Clark Retakes Vincennes 61 

(7) 



8 Readings in Indiana History 

Chapter IV. 
Indian Border Wars. 

PAGE 

25. Major Hamtramck at Vincennes 64 

26. Gamelin's Mission to the Miamis 68 

27. General Scott Destroys Ouiatanon 74 

28. General Wilkinson's Reconnoitering Party 79 

29. Stories of Indian Captivity: The Stephen Ashby Family 83 

30. Stories of Indian Captivity: A Thrilling Rescue 87 

31. The Ranger Service 97 

32. Threatening Humor of the Indians: Letters from the Frontier, 

1809-1810 103 

33. The Council at Vincennes, 1810 105 

34. The Tippecanoe Campaign: The March Ill 

35. The Battle of Tippecanoe 119 

36. The War of 1812: Fort Harrison 123 

37. The War of 1812: Pigeon Roost Massacre 128 

38. The War of 1812: Siege of Fort Wayne 131 

39. Life on the Twelve-Mile Purchase from 1810 to 1814 135 

40. In the Vallonia Neighborhood 137 

41. The Maria Creek Settlement 144 

41a. The Pioneers 146 



PART III. PIONEER INDIANA, 1816 TO 1836. 

Chapter V. 

42. Introductory Sketch 147 

Chapter VI. 
Life in the Wilderness About 1816. 

43. Lincoln's Indiana Home 149 

44. A View of the New State 153 

45. The "Creep" of Civilized Life 15b 

Chapter VII. 
Coming of the Settlers. 

46. Blazing the Wilderness Trail: Whetzel's Trace 157 

47. Migration to the New Purchase 161 

48. Through Storm and Flood 166 

48a. To Indiana 170 

Chapter VIII. 
Clearing the Forests. 

49. The Operation of Clearing 171 

50. Cutting, Rolling, and Burning Logs 172 

51. Log-RoUing— A Western "Frolic" 173 



Contents 9 

Chapter IX. 
Building the Home. 

PAGE 

52. The "Half-Face Camp" 175 

53. A Pioneer Homestead 177 

54. The Pioneer Home 182 

Chapter X. 
Pioneer Farming. 

55. Cost of Preparing a New Farm 192 

56. Prairie versus Timber Lands 194 

57. Early Scientific Agriculture: Stock 196 

58. Hogs!! 197 

Chapter XI. 
Disposal of Public Lands. 

59. How to "Enter" Land 198 

60. "Squatters" 199 

61. Land Speculators 201 

62. Land Sales at Crawfordsville 203 

63. How the Public Lands were Surveyed 206 

Chapter XII. 
Transportation and Travel. 

64. Old Thoroughfares in Indiana 210 

65. The "Buffalo Trace" 214 

66. Two Improved Highways 217 

67. A Plank Road 220 

68. A Corduroy Road 222 

69. Some Early Stage Lines 223 

70. Slow Travel by Stage 225 

71. An Old Time Western Tavern 226 

72. A Bad Tavern 228 

73. Flatboating Days: Building a Flatboat 231 

74. Indiana Flatboats at New Orleans 234 

75. A Ferry-Boat "Ad" 236 

76. A Steamboat Trip on the Wabash 237 

77. First Steamboat on White River 241 

Chapter XIII. 
Travel Stories. 

78. From the Ohio to the New Purchase 243 

79. Traveling the Circuit 250 

80. Travel on the Old National Road 252 

81. Along the Wabash and Erie Canal 254 



lo Readings in Indiana History 

Chapter XIV. 
Pioneer Society. 

PAGE 

82. The Hoosier's Nest (Poem) 257 

S2a. Some Hoosier Characteristics 258 

83. Social Gatherings in Pioneer Times 262 

84. The Shooting-Match 264 

85. The Shooting-Match: The Terms 271 

86. The Shooting-Match: The Weapons 273 

87. The Militia Muster 274 

88. The "Cornstalk Militia" 275 

89. A Muster on the Wea Plains 276 

90. A Social E.xperiment: Father Rapp at New Harmony 277 

91. Robert Owen and New Harmony 280 

Chapter XV. 
Hunting Stories. 

92. Adventure With Wild Hogs 283 

93. Snake-Killing on the Big Wea 285 

94. Bear-Catching Near Pride's Fort 288 

95. Adventure with a Panther 290 

96. Wolf Tales of the Forest 291 

97. An Old-Time Grist Mill 292 

Chapter XVI. 
Religious Life of the Pioneers. 

98. Building the Meeting House 294 

99. Some Pioneer Preachers 298 

100. Quarterly-Meeting Penitence 304 

101. An Old-Time Camp Meeting 306 

102. Life at a Camp-Meeting 311 

103. Preachers on the Circuit 314 

Ch.ipter XVII. 

Pioneer Schools. 

104. A Pioneer School 323 

105. "Loud" Schools 327 

106. School Customs of Early Days 329 

Chapter XVIII. 
Civic Ideals of the Pioneers. 

107. An Early Court Scene 333 

108. "Choke-Trap" Justice 334 

109. A Sheriff Outwitted 337 

110. Legislating in the Backwoods 339 

HI. An Election at Terre Haute in 1851 341 



Contents 1 1 

Chapter XIX. 
Health of the Pioneers. 

PAGE 

112. Sickness and Exposure in the Wilderness 344 

113. The Pioneer Physician 347 

114. The Life of the Pioneer Physician 349 

115. Some Old Recipes 350 

Chapter XX. 

Removal of the Indians. 

116. The Trail of Death 353 



PART IV. A STATE IN THE MAKING. 

Chapter XXI. 

117. Introductory Sketch 355 

Chapter XXII. 
Internal Improvements. 

118. Canals versus Railroads 357 

119. Opening of the Wabash and Erie Canal 359 

120. Labor Troubles on the Canal 360 

121. Railroad Celebration at Shelbyville 362 

Chapter XXIII. 
Banks and Banking. 

122. The State Bank of Indiana 363 

123. Difficulty in Exchanging Bills 366 

Ch.\pter XXIV. 

Political Parties. 

124. A Jackson Convention 367 

125. Perils of a Congressional Campaign 371 

126. Convention of the People on the Tippecanoe Battle Groimd (A 

Whig Rally) 373 

PART V. NATIONAL QUESTIONS, 1844 TO 1876. 

Chapter XXV. 

127. Introductory Sketch 377 



12 Readings in Indiana History 

Chapter XXVI. 
The Slavery Contest in Indiana. 

PAGE 

128. Slave Indentures in Indiana Territory 379 

129. Beecher's View of the Fugitive Slave Law 382 

130. A Struggle for Liberty 385 

131. A Slave-Hunter Outwitted 390 

132. Jerry Sullivan's Raid at the Old Dongola Bridge 395 

133. Eldridge Hopkins to the Rescue 401 

Chapter XXVII. 

Indiana in the Civil War. 

134. Lincoln in Indiana 407 

135. Governor Morton as the Soldiers' Friend 410 

136. Governor Morton as a Leader 413 

137. Newspaper Story of Morgan's Raid 415 

138. Morgan's Raid: General Duke's Account 417 

1.39. Indiana Volunteers: A Raw Recruit 420 

Chapter XXVIII. 
Camp Life of the Volunteers. 

140. Letter from Camp Wallace: Camp Life 421 

141. A Soldier's Hardships in Virginia 423 

142. The Affair at Romney 425 

143. Scenes Around Corinth 428 

144. On Scout Duty 429 

145. On the Firing-Line — At Antietam 431 

146. On the March 435 

Chapter XXIX. 

Indiana and the Freedmen. 

147. Negro Soldiers 439 

148. Rights of the Negro in Indiana 441 

149. A Colored Sunday-School 442 

Chapter XXX. 
Indiana — A Backward and a Forward Look. 

150. The Indiana Centennial— 1916 445 

151. Indiana (Poem) 450 



Outlines for Study 451 

Index 465 



Illustrations 



PAGE 

George Rogers Clark 48 

"I perceived an Indian on horseback a few miles to the right" 75 

Government House of Indiana Territory at Vincennes 106 

Governor Harrison and Tecumseh in Council at Vincennes in 1810 107 

Fort Wayne about 1812 131 

Chief Little Turtle I35 

House in which Abraham Lincoln was Born 148 

Lincoln Farm in Indiana 148 

Lincoln's Indiana Home 150 

Pioneer Home on Patoka River 176 

A Cabin in the Clearing 178 

Friedman Pioneer Home, near Jasper 180 

Log House of the Better Type 185 

Neckyoke and Plow 191 

Early Means of Transportation 210 

The Old Indian Ford at Jasper 215 

Four-horse Stage Coach 224 

Log Tavern, Indiana 226 

Bear Trap 288 

Timnel Mill, near Vernon, Indiana 293 

McKendrie M. E. Church, near Brookville, Indiana 295 

First Log Schoolhouse in Wayne County 322 

Portersville Court House, 1818 334 

Capitol Building of Indiana Territory, 1806 until 1813 340 

Rally Poster in 1840 374 

The Old Bacon Home. A Station on the Underground Railroad 388 

Arrival of Fugitives on the Underground Railroad 388 

The Runaway 396 

Old-Fashioned Bridge over Patoka River at Duff 400 

MAPS. 

The Rivers of Indiana 24 

Distribution of Indian Tribes 27 

The Northwest in 1778 46 

Map Showing Indian Land Cessions 152 

Map of Indiana in 1818, showing the "New Purchase" 162 

Ralston Plat of Indianapolis, 1821 165 

Principal Meridian and Base Lines in the Old Northwest 206 

A "Congress Township" and a Section Subdivided 208 

Indiana in 1836 356 

Map of Underground Railroad in Indiana 386 

(13) 



Readings in Indiana History 



PART I. INTRODUCTORY 



1. Historical Survey 

The development of the western States of the American Union is 
rapidly becoming one of the most attractive fields for historical 
study. The origin and development of communities, in the dim 
daM'n of Greek, Roman, and German history, have been studied 
with much interest. In America this development took place in the 
broad daylight of modern times. No colonies in historical times 
were freer to work out their own political and social organization. 
Any and all persons were welcome to settle in the valleys beyond 
the Appalachian mountains. There were no religious require- 
ments, no political connections, no commercial restrictions worth 
speaking of. Protestants and Catholics, Methodists and Presby- 
terians, Quakers and Baptists, and thousands with no religious 
preferences at all, sat down together in the wilderness. Their 
children often attended the same schools; they helped one another 
build their houses, roll their logs, and build their churches. They 
fought out their religious battles with brain and tongue and re- 
mained good neighbors during and after the battle. 

From the East came the Puritanic New Englanders with high 
Federalist notions. From the South came Scotch and Irish peas- 
ants and blue-blooded Virginians with Jeffersonian democratic 
tendencies. From Canada and Europe came the subjects of kings. 
All these, with every shade of political opinion, came together to 
organize townships, counties, and states, with the single restriction 
on their work that they make their institutions republican. It was 
not even compulsory that they form any government at all ; they 
could remain under the first grade of territorial government, a mil- 
itary protectorate. Nothing can be more instructive than to observe 
how these pioneers constructed their local governments ajid then 
became imbued with the idea that anyone could make laws and 
administer a government. They were all Jacksonian democrats in 
the sense that they believed in the honesty and equality of all men. 

(15) 



i6 Readings in Indiana History 

Realizing the close connection between good government and good 
citizenship they stood for good government. Realizing the close 
relation between general intelligence and good government they 
stood for universal education. 

Likewise, in commerce the pioneers were left to their own re- 
sources. They could trade with the Indians, with the English of 
Canada, or the Spanish at New Orleans, so far as the government of 
the United States was concerned. Instead of hindering them, the 
National Government did what it could to promote their foreign 
trade, by opening up the Mississippi and the Lakes to American 
commtrce. Aside from practically giving the colonists the land on 
which they settled, the National Government did little directly to 
aid them. 

In their struggles with the Indians, with the Spanish, and with 
the English, it was the frontier riflemen that determined the battles. 
In the struggles with forest and streams it was the pioneer thought 
and muscle that planned and executed. The pioneers built their 
own schools and educated themselves along their own lines. No- 
where in history has there been such freedom of thought and action. 
Their achievements and failures are all their own. The struggle 
has now been going on over a century. The following selections 
have been chosen with a view to illustrate this struggle of a century, 
the stage and the actors. 

2. Suggestions to Teachers 

The best results are to be attained only by a more or less system- 
atic study of what is as yet a new field of history. The richness of 
subject-matter, the nearness to the lives and interests of the chil- 
dren, the importance of the subject in civic training, all render 
necessary increasing emphasis upon the study of the State 's history. 
To gain time for this the teacher may shift the stress from less im- 
portant parts of American History as, for example, the usual elab- 
oration of the Columbus tradition, or the emphasis upon the facts of 
early colonial settlement, or better still the stress upon the details 
of military campaigns in the early wars. 

In general, two or three plans for using the "Readings" suggest 
themselves. First, they may be used as material for occasional 
story-reproduction in oral composition. This casual and more or 
less random employment of the selections hardly suffices for pur- 
poses of historical study. Again, they may be taken up in the read- 
ing hour, as a substitute for the selections in the reader or book of 



Introductory 17 

classics. This plan is little better than the first mentioned for seri- 
ous study of history. Or, finally, they may be given as the basis for 
topical studies in Indiana history. This use, if followed up with 
class discussions, should give satisfactory results. To aid in this 
kind of study and discussion, outlines for assignment and prepara- 
tion of lessons have been appended at the close of the book. 

In the class hour, under the skilled guidance of the teacher, the 
pupils should be encouraged to offer comments and to discuss freely, 
from their indi\idual points of view, the problems which con- 
fronted former generations of builders of community and State, 
In tliis way the civic habit of weighing and judging the factors in 
current problems is developed. The pioneer period, in the larger 
sense, was rife wdth privation and hardship, with struggle and cease^ 
less labor, with brain-puzzling problems of adaptation ; the period 
of constructive energy which follow^ed was no less full of hard and 
difficult problems of institution-making and revision. Children 
should not only draw fruitful comparisons with present day life 
and conditions but should enter with appreciative insight into the 
experiences of those builders who wrought so well in their day and 
generation. Above all, they should come to feel a strong sense of 
obligation to the forefathers of the commonwealth for their contri- 
bution, neither small nor insignificant, to the material and moral 
greatness of the Indiana of to-day. 

The teacher with artistic instinct will seek to create vivid impres- 
sions of past scenes and experiences. She will live over with the 
children those striking episodes in the invasion of the wilderness, in 
preparing the soil for human habitation, in the contests with the 
savage, and in the later struggles for liberty and freedom from the 
stain of slavery. To do this requires the stimulation and exercise of 
the creative intellect and imagination. A boy or girl who is asked 
to write an imaginative letter from a child in a pioneer home, de- 
scribing the surroimdings and recounting the experiences of an 
Indian attack, or who composes an autobiographical sketch of a 
hunted slave on Indiana soil, or who frames a speech of an Indian 
chieftain as he looks for the last time upon the waters of his be- 
loved Wabash before departing on the weary pilgrimage to the dis- 
tant west land, — has gone far toward living in vivid fashion the 
experiences of actors in the drama of the past. 

Visualization is a fruitful means of creating vivid impressions. 
Children who draw or paint will find real pleasure in reproducing 
in crayon or color the stalwart figure and gay dress of an Indian 

2—1643 



i8 Readings in Indiana History 

chief — a Tecumseh or a Little Turtle — or in sketching- the outlines 
of a river-ark, with an immigrant family al)oard and bound for the 
wilderness, or in drawing a canal scene or portraying the arrival of 
a lumbering stage-coach. The boys who do manual work will find 
an outlet for constructive ability in making the model of an early 
flatboat, a blockhouse, a stockaded fort, or an Indian tomahawk. 
Such articles and drawings form suggestive tokens and decorative 
features for the schoolroom upon which children look with pride 
and satisfaction. Map-making always lends definiteness and visual- 
ized form to place relationships. Clark 's exploits in the Northwest, 
Scott's expedition into the Indian country, the route of the Wabash 
and Erie Canal, and of the Whetzel and "Buffalo" Traces, should 
be carefully placed upon a map and necessary details added to make 
clear the setting. 

Another means of giving vividness and reality to history study 
is to set the children to gather the neighborhood traditions of the 
past. Often the richest vein will be struck in the family narratives 
of the part played by grandparents in the great movements of 
former days. In some cases, a living representative of the olden 
times, a pioneer survivor in the community, will furnish gladly a 
stock of new and instructive sidelights on an age whose records are 
all too meager. A volunteer of the Civil "War, a member of the 
''Home Guards" in the days of Morgan, will recount for the chil- 
dren the scenes of those "stirring days." Many times old letters 
come to light in such a search and add their note of reality to the 
study of the past. 

The teacher should be prepared to fill in the details of the picture 
whose rough outlines may be discerned in the selections and their 
grouping. Fortunately^ a literature is rapidly growing up around 
the story of Indiana in the making, and more and more that story is 
becoming common property. The selections themselves will be 
found to supplement one another in many places. For example, the 
description of the forests, in the opening selection, is carried fur- 
ther in half a dozen other places, as in the selections on clearing the 
forests, and in the travel and hunting stories. Rich and abundant 
material bearing on the sub.iect is constantly appearing in the 
liidiana Magazine of History. 



PART II. AN INDIAN/COUNTRY, 1765 TO 1816 



CHAPTER 1 
3. Introductory Sketch 

The soil of what is now Indiana, when first visited by white men, 
was heavily forested. There were no open blue-grass pastures such 
as charmed the eyes of Daniel Boone when he first beheld Ken- 
tucky, nor was it an impassable thicket of vegetation such as is still 
to be found in the cypress swamps of IMississippi. There were tree- 
less places like the Shaker prairie north of Vincennes, and the Wea 
plains south of Lafayette, where deer and buffaloes might be seen by 
hundreds in their season. In general the country might have been 
called an open woodland. A few well-beaten paths crossed the 
State from northwest to southeast, made originally by buffaloes 
passing from the Illinois prairies to the Kentucky canebrakes. 
Later these were used l)y the Indians, the French, and the early 
pioneers from the eastern colonies. 

Few States are so well drained, naturally, as Indiana. It lies 
open to the St. Lawrence system on the north. Into this the 
Maumee and the St. Joseph drain, while the northwest corner bor- 
ders on Lake Michigan. Across the central portion of the State 
from northeast to southwest runs the beautiful Wabash, the favor- 
ite stream of the State. Its long, parallel branches reach out into 
almost every county, and in the old days this fact made it the 
delight of the fur-traders. In their light canoes they glided smooth- 
ly up and down White river. Driftwood, Eel, Tippecanoe, and the 
Mississinewa. The Ohio and its small branches opened up the south- 
ern border of the State to the settlers coming in from the east, and, 
after they had become established, furnished a way over which 
they reached the markets in their flat boats. The small clear lakes 
in the northern part of the State were the favorite resorts of the 
Indians just as they are now the resorts of the white people. 

Indiana was once probably the home of the IMiamis, though his- 
tory fails us at this point. Wlien the first French explorers reached 
this region there were no tribes living in what is now Indiana. The 
Miamis and their kinsmen had fled to the westward in fear of the 
Iroquois, who had secured guns from the Dutch at New Amsterdam. 

(19) 



20 Readings in Indiana History 

Some time after 1700 the Miamis secured firearms and returned 
to their old home on the Wabash, if indeed it had ever been their 
home. From 1700 to 1763 the Indians and French fur traders in- 
habited the land, living very much together and on equal terms. 
Catholic missionaries also visited the land and tried to wean the 
Indians from their native savagery. 

In 1763 the English took possession, English traders in large 
measure taking over the fur trade. The greedy English trader 
brought firearms and liquor to the tribesmen and from that date 
began the rapid decline of the Indian nations. Pontiac's War put 
an end to English domination, though of course England retained 
title to the country till the conquest in 1779 by Virginia. With that 
event, which marked the coming of American settlers, the old 
French era ends. 

The baneful influence of the British fur traders, often encour- 
aged by the British government, remained with the Indians till the 
last. The English were largely responsible for the destructive 
wars between the Americans and the Indians. The latter got their 
guns and ammunition from the English. The purpose of the En- 
glish was entirely selfish. The longer they could keep the North- 
west an Indian hunting-ground the longer they would enjoy the fur 
trade. Had the British promptly withdrawn, in observance of the 
treaty of 1788, it is probable the whole Miami confederacy could 
have been saved to civilization. 



CHAPTER II 
INDIANA WHEN ENGLISHMEN FIRST CAME 

4. The Forests 

(From A History of Johnson County, by Judge David Demaree Banta 

[1881], pp. 50-51.) 

Judge Banta was well acquainted with the settlers of Johnson 
county, having been an editor at Franklin before the Civil War. For 
further description of early forests see the selection from Croghan's 
Journal, and Scott's Expedition. 

Tall trees covered tlie whole country with their wide- 
spreading branches depending to the ground, and the 
shrubbery below arose and united with the branches of the 
trees. Huge grape-vines, scorning to associate with the 
humble shrubs, like great serpents ascended and festooned 
the trees to the topmost branches, and thence, spreading in 
every direction, crept from tree to tree, tying and uniting 
the tops of a dozen together into an undistinguishable net- 
work of vegetation, as if for defense against the omnipotent 
force of the cyclone. Here grass and tallest trees, 

"Impenetrable 
To star or sunlight, spread their umbrage broad 
And brown as evening;" 

for 

" — nature here 
Wantoned as in her prime, and played at will 
Her virgin fancies, pouring forth more strength 
Wild above rule or art." 

In the open spaces, in the valleys, grew either prickly- 
ash or nettles, both equally armed with sharp, fiery prickles. 
The nettles grew so thick and were so terrible in the burning 
pain inflicted that the wounded wild deer in its flight from 
the hounds of the hunter, although in search of a covert, 
would never enter. It was often necessary to cover the 
horses' legs while plowing fresh lands to prevent contact 

(21) 



22 Readings in Indiana History 

with the nettles. The soil, after a heavy rain, seemed to 
be afloat, and a deer, in its escape from the hunter, left so 
conspicuous a trail that he could be as readily followed as 
in the snow. Where the spicewood did not grow too thickly 
male fern formed a solid mass three feet in depth, covering 
logs and pitfalls so completely that the unwary walker often 
found himself thrown on his head beyond the obstruction. 
The dry lands along the creeks and rivers were first brought 
into cultivation. The highest lands were often table-lands 
and the wettest. One-half of Johnson county was of this 
character. Here, long sloughs extended over the country 
for miles, choked with brush and logs, and often without 
any outlet, and seemed to be, as no doubt they were, sections 
of extinct rivers, many of them half a mile in width ; and, in 
the rainy season, except for fallen logs, might have been 
navigated for long distances. In passing over these wet 
lands in the rainy season but little dry land would appear, 
except an occasional dry spot like an islet, with its crest 
lowly bowed as if in dread of submergence. If any attempt 
was made to cultivate these wet lands, by deadening the tim- 
ber, and also by opening the drains, nothing was produced. 
The crop was drowned by the percolation and infiltration 
(seeping) of water from the adjoining wet lands. It was, 
therefore, indispensably necessary that large bodies should 
be brought into cultivation at once. And so it was that for 
miles in extent the lands were deadened and exposed to the 
action of the sun. The ground thus became drier and 
caused contraction on the roots of shrubbery, which had 
grown in a loose, wet soil, by which the whole died together. 
A man traveling through the woods on horseback could be 
heard a half-mile away crashing the brush and mowing a 
road for himself and horse. When the trees and shrubbery 
died the whole ground was soon covered with fallen trees 
and brush. The wild weeds and grass now took possession 
of the ground and covered it also. During a dry time two or 
three men might, by merely sowing the deadening over with 
fire, burn up the whole superincumbent covering over eight 
or ten acres in a single day. The sloughs, which abounded, 
and which, except for obstructions by fallen timber, might 



When Englishmen First Came 23 

have been navigated by small crafts for miles, were thus 
soon opened, and the dramage further assisted by tiling, 
till the whole country, in an incredibly short time, was 
brought into cultivation. 

5. Sui't'ace and Rivers 

(From A New Guide to Emiorants to the West, by J. M. Peck [1836], 

pp. 225-227.) 

The counties bordering on the Ohio river are hilly — 
sometimes abrupt, precipitous, stony, occasionally degen- 
erating into knobs and ravines. Commencing at the mouth 
of White river, on the Wabash, and following up that 
stream on its east fork, and thence along the Muscatatuck, 
through Jennings and Eipley counties to Lawrenceville 
[Lawrenceburg], and you leave the rough and hilly portion 
of Indiana to the right. Much of the country we have de- 
nominated hilly is rich, fertile land, even to the summits of 
the hills. On all the streams are strips of rich alluvion of 
exhaustless fertility. The interior, on the two White rivers 
and tributaries, is moderately undulating, tolerably rich 
soil, and much of it heavily timbered with oaks of various 
species, poplar, beech, sugar tree, walnuts, hickory, elm, and 
other varieties common to the West. There is much level 
table-land between the streams. Along the Wabash, below 
Terre Haute, is an undulating surface, diversified with for- 
est and prairie, with a soil of middling quality, interspersed 
\\dth some very rich tracts. Along the Wabash and its 
tributaries above Terre Haute the land in general is first 
rate — a large proportion is forest, interspersed with beau- 
tiful prairies. The timber consists of oaks of various spe- 
cies, poplar, ash, walnut, cherry, elm, sugar tree, buckeye, 
hickory, some beech, sassafras, lime, honey-locust, with some 
Cottonwood, sycamore, hackberry and mulberry on the bot- 
tom lands. The undergrowth is spice-bush, hazel, plum, 
crabapple, hawthorn and vines. Along the northern part 
of the State are extensive prairies and tracts of barrens, 
with groves of various kinds of timber and skirts of bur- 
oak. Towards Lake Michigan and along the Kankakee and 
St. Joseph rivers are lakes, swamps and marshes. 




The RrvEHS of Indiana 

(Taken from'a map by Prbston H. Mileb in the Report of the Commissioner of Fisheries and Oame of Indiana for 1911-12.) 



When Englishmen First Came 1^ 

The Ohio meanders along the southeastern and 
southern parts of the State for 350 miles in extent. The 
east and west forks of White river, and their tributaries, 
water the interior counties for one hundred miles in extent. 
They are both navigable streams for flatboats during the 
spring and autumn floods. The Wabash river has several 
heads, which interlock with the waters of the St. Joseph 
and St. Mary's, which form the Maumee of Lake Erie. It 
runs a southwestwardly course across the State to Warren 
county — thence southwardly to Vigo county, where it be- 
comes the boundary between Indiana and Illinois, along 
which it meanders to the Ohio, which it enters twelve miles 
above Shawneetown. The St. Joseph of Lake Michigan 
makes a curve into Elkhart and St. Joseph counties, form- 
ing what is called the South Bend. The Kankakee, which 
is the longest branch of Illinois river, rises in Indiana, near 
the South Bend. Some of its head waters interlock with 
those of Tippecanoe, a prominent tributary of the Wabash. 

6. The IMiami Indians 

(From A History of Johnson County, by D. D. Banta [1881], p. 16.) 
The Indians, known to the pioneers of Johnson county, doubt- 
less came from the White river to\viis, scattered along its banks 
from Port Royal Bluffs to Anderson. There were traces of Indian 
villages in northern Johnson county and southern Marion; but 
these towns, if they had ever existed, had been abandoned or possi- 
bly destroyed by General Scott or Wilkinson in 1791. 

At the time of the discovery and exploration of the West, 
the Miami tribe of Indians occupied the whole of Indiana, 
the western part of Ohio, the southern part of Michigan, 
and the eastern part of Illinois. Unlike most other tribes, 
the Miamis had no traditions of former migrations, and are 
presumed therefore to have occupied this land for a time 
' ' whence the memorj^ of man runneth not to the contrary. ' ' 
Little Turtle, a celebrated chief of the Miamis, confirmed 
this in a speech made to General Wayne at the treaty of 
Greenville, in 1795. ''You have pointed out to us," said 
the unlettered orator, "the boundary line between the In- 



26 Readings in Indiana History 

dians and tlie United States ; but I now take the liberty to 
inform you that the line cuts off from the Indians a large 
portion of country which has been enjoyed by my fore- 
fathers from time immemorial, without molestation or dis- 
pute. The prints of my ancestors' houses are everywhere 
to be seen in this portion. . . . It is well known by all 
my brothers present that my forefather kindled the first 
fire at Detroit ; from there he extended his lines to the head- 
waters of the Scioto ; thence to its mouth ; thence down the 
Ohio to the Wabash, and thence to Chicago, on Lake 
Michigan. ' ' 

7. Distribution of the Miamis 

(From the His tori/ of Hoirard and Tipton Comities, by .Judge N. R. Over- 
man [1833], p. 16.) 

This selection shows with some accuracy the location and num- 
bers of the Miami tribes. 

In 1765 the Miami confederacy was composed of the fol- 
lowing branches : The Twightwees, situated at the head 
of the Miami river, with 250 warriors ; and the Ouiatanons, 
in tlie vicinity of their village, Ouiatanon (pronounced AVe- 
ot'-e-non) . The latter were situated on the north side of the 
Wea Plains, on the south bank of the Wabash, a short dis- 
tance below the present city of Lafayette, and had 300 war- 
riors. This village of Ouiatanon at one time had a popu- 
lation of 5,000 inhabitants, and was the metropolis of the 
Indians of the Wabash valley. The village was nearly four 
miles in length and a half mile in width. It was destroyed 
in the year 1791 by soldiers under the command of Gen. 
Charles Scott. The Piankishaws, on the Vermilion river, 
had 300 warriors. In the early Indian wars the Miamis 
were the enemies of the English and the friends of the 
French. Afterward, in the trouble between the King and 
the colonies, they were generally the allies of the English 
and the foes of the States. They looked upon the approach 
of the white man with the deepest distrust, fearing degrada- 
tion, destruction, and ultimate extinction. They loved their 
native forests, worshipped freedom, and hated restraint. 
They feared the advance of invaders, and abhorred the 



When Englishmen First Came 



27 



forms of civilization. It is said that the Miamis were early 
and earnestly impressed with a fearful foreboding of ulti- 
mate ruin, and therefore seized upon every opportunity to 
terrify, destroy, and drive back the invading enemy. 




Distribution of Indian Tribes, 1765-1800 



8. Natives of the Wabash Country 

(From Documents Relatinu to the Colonial History of Neto York, IX, 
pp. 801-892; Writer Unknown, [1718].) 

The Indians inhabiting the soil of Indiana belonged to the Al- 
goiKiuin family, and most of them to the ]Miami tribe. Their ances- 
tral homes were at the present sites of Fort Wayne and Lafayette. 
The Delawares came in after the Revolution and established villages 
on White river. To the north, on the prairies west of Lafayette, 
were the Kickapoos, relatives of the Weas and Miamis. On the St. 
Joseph were the Pottawattomies, also related to the Miamis. School- 
craft estimated the number of warriors in Indiana at the close of 
the Revolution as 8,000, or about 40,000 souls. They were savages. 

The writer of the following selection had lately visited the tribes 
in Indiana, 



28 Readings in Indiana History 

The Miamis are sixty leagues from Lake Erie, and num- 
ber 400, all well-formed men, and well-tattooed ; the women 
are numerous. They are hard-working and raise a species 
of maize unlike that of our Indians at Detroit. It is white, 
of the same size as the other, the skin much finer and the 
meal much whiter. This nation is clad in deerskin; and 
when a -married woman goes with another man, her husband 
cuts off her nose and does not see her any more. This is 
the only nation that has such a custom. They love plays 
and dances, wherefore they have more occupation. The 
women are well clothed, but the men use scarcely any cover- 
ing and are tattooed all over the body. From this Miami 
village^ there is a portage of three leagues to a little and 
very narrow stream that falls, after a course of twenty 
leagues, into the Ohio, or the Beautiful river, which dis- 
charges into the Ouabache^ (Wabash), a fine river that falls 
into the Mississippi, forty leagues from Cascachias (Kas- 
kaskia). 

This River Ouabache is the one on which the Ouiatanons 
are settled. They consist of five villages, which are con- 
tiguous the one to the other. One is called Ouiatanon, the 
other Peanguichias (Pe-an-gwee'-chi-6s), and another Petit- 
scotias (Pet-it-sc5'-ti-6s), and the fourth Les Gros.^ The 
name of the last I do not recollect, but they are Ouiatanons, 
having the same language as the Miamis, whose brothers 
they are, and properly all Miamis, having all the same cus- 
toms and dress. The men are very numerous ; fully a thou- 
sand or twelve hundred. They have a custom different 
from all the other nations, which is to keep their fort ex- 
tremely clean, not allowing a blade of grass to remain in it. 
The whole of the fort is sanded like the Tuileries.^ 

Their village is situated on a high hill, and they have 
over two leagues of improvement where they raise their 
Indian corn, pumpkins and melons. From the summit of 
this elevation nothing is visible to the eye but prairies full 
of buffaloes. Their playing and dancing are incessant. All 

' Kokionga, on the present site of Fort Wayne. 

- The early explorers called the Ohio a tributary of the Wabash. 

^ The Weas, living where Lafayette now is. 

* The royal palace in Paris. 



When Englishmen First Came 29 

these tribes use a vast quantity of vermilion.'' The women 
wear clothing ; the men very little. The River Ohio, or the 
Beautiful river, is the route which the Iroquois take. It 
would be of importance that they should not have much in- 
tercourse, as it is very dangerous. Attention has been called 
to this matter long since, but no notice has been taken of it. 

9. Pottawattoinie Story oi' How the Tndian Race Began 

(From liuVuub Tribes of the United ^States, by Henry R. Sciioolckaft 

[1847], I, p. 320.) 

The Pottawattomies lived in Northern Indiana and Southern 
Michigan. They belonged to a group called the Lake Indians whose 
mythology was held in common. This story belongs in the same 
class with those which Longfellow has woven into the poem Hia- 
watha. This tribe took a prominent part in the war of 1812, at the 
massacre of Fort Dearborn, the battle of Tippecanoe, and the 
attacks on Fort Wayne and Fort Harrison. This simple myth 
shows their childlike ideas of the beginning of things. 

When Kitch-e-mon'-e-do made the world he filled it with 
a class of beings who looked like men, but who were 
perverse, ungrateful, wicked dogs, and never raised their 
eyes from the ground to thank him for anything. Seeing 
this, the Great Spirit plunged them, with the world itself, 
into a great lake, and drowned them. He then withdrew it 
from the water, and made a single man, a very handsome 
young man, who, as he was lonesome, appeared sad. KTtch- 
e-mon'-e-do took pity on him, and sent him a sister to cheer 
him in his loneliness. 

After many years the young man had a dream which he 
told to his sister. Five young men, said he, will come to 
your lodge door this night to visit you. The Great Spirit 
forbids you to answer or even look up and smile at the first 
four; but when the fifth comes you may speak and laugh 
and show that you are pleased. She acted accordingly. 
The first of the five strangers that called was U-sa'-mii, or 
tobacco, and having been repulsed, he fell down and died ; 
the second, Wa'-p6-ko, or pumpkin, shared the same fate; 

" A brilliant red coloring matter used by the Indians In painting their faces and 
bodies when on the warpath. 



30 Readings in Indiana History 

the third, Esh-koss'-i-min, or melon, and the fourth, K5'- 
Kees, or the bean, met the same fate. But when To'-mm, 
or Mon-ta'-mm, wliich is maize, presented himself, she 
opened the skin-tapestry door of her lodge, and laughed very 
heartily, and gave him a friendly reception. They were im- 
mediately married, and from this union the Indians sprung. 
Tomin forthwith buried the four unsuccessful suitors, and 
from their graves there grew tobacco, melons of all sorts, 
and beans; and in this manner the Great Spirit provided 
that the race which he had made should have something to 
offer him as a gift in their feasts and ceremonies, and also 
somethirlg to put into their akeeks, or kettles, along with 
their meat. 

10. Shawnee Tradition of Indian Origins 

(From Indian Trihcs of the Imtcd (States, by Henry R. Schoolcraft 

[1847], IV, p. 255.) 

The Shawnees lived in Western Ohio and mingled wdth the 
Miamis and Delawares of Indiana. They had a tradition of having 
crossed a great sea and annually for many years offered sacrifices 
for their safe deliverance. The following story is characteristic of 
a class of stories of creation common to these western Indians. 

It is many years ago since the numbers of the Shawnees 
were very great. They were, on an important occasion, en- 
camped together on a prairie. At night one-half of them 
fell asleep; the others remained awake. Those who kept 
awake abandoned the sleepers before morning and betook 
themselves to the course where the sun rises. The others 
gradually pursued their route in the direction where the sun 
sets. This was the origin of the two nations, the first of 
which was called Shawnee, and the other Kickapoo. 

Prior to this separation these nations were considered 
one, and were blessed with the bounties of heaven above 
any blessings which are now enjoyed by any description of 
mankind. And they ascribe their present depressed condi- 
tion and the withdrawal of the favors of Providence to the 
anger of the Great Being at their separation. 

Among the many tokens of divine favor which they for- 
merly enjoyed was the art of walking on the surface of the 



When Englishmen First Came 31 

ocean, by which they crossed from the East to America 
without vessels; also the art of restoring life to the dead, 
by the use of medical arts continued for the space of six 
hours. Witchcraft and prophecy were, Avith them, at their 
highest state, and were practiced without feigning ; and, in 
fine, such were the gifts of heaven to them that nothing fell 
short of their inconceivable power to perform. And after 
the Shawnees have wandered to the remotest west and re- 
turned eastward to the original place of separation, the 
world will have finished its career. It is believed by the 
Shawnees that the consummation of this prophecy is not far 
distant, because they have, in fulfillment of the prophecy, 
reached the extreme western point, and are now retrograd- 
ing on their steps. 

11. Indian Life and Customs: Training of Indian Youth 

(From Indian Speeches, and a Treatise on the Western Indians, edited by 
HiBAM W. Beckwith [1882], pp. 87-88.) 

Both the male and the female children are nurtured in 
such a manner as is best calculated to endure the greatest 
hardships. They are compelled to bathe their bodies in 
cold water every day, and fast for a certain length of time. 
The length of time a child has to fast is regulated by its 
age. A child that is eight years old will fast half a day, 
and one that is twelve or sixteen will fast a day. The per- 
son who is fasting has his face blackened and is not per- 
mitted to wash it until the time of fasting is out. The face 
of the male is blackened all over; that of the female on 
the cheeks only. The male quits this practice at the age of 
eighteen ; his education is then said to be complete, and he 
is old enough to be a man. His face is then blackened for 
the last time, and he is taken a mile or two from any house, 
where he has a small hut built for him out of bushes or 
weeds. After this, he is addressed by his father, or guard- 
ian, in the following words : 

My son, it has pleased all the Great Spirits that live 
above the clouds, and all those that live on the earth, that 
you should live to see this day; they have all witnessed 
your conduct since I first blackened your face ; they know 



^2 Readings in Indiana History 

whether you have at all times adhered to the advice I have 
given you ; I hope they will reward you accordingly. You 
must now remain here, until myself or some of your friends 
come to you. 

The man then returns home, takes his gun and goes 
hunting, while his son is left five or six days, and some- 
times eight days, without anything to eat or drink. When 
the father or guardian has procured enough meat for a 
feast, he invites some of his neighbors to come and help 
partake of what he has. They accompany him to where his 
son has been staying for several days ; the boy is then taken 
home, where he is immersed in cold water, his head shaved 
all over except a small spot on the top; victuals are then 
given him, which have been prepared in a separate vessel 
for that purpose. After he is done eating, a looking-glass 
is given him, and a bag of vermilion or paint; he is then 
told by the company that he is a man. After this he is 
considered as such by the people of the village. They fre- 
quently go to war before being declared men in this manner, 
and they are respected according to their merit. 

Immediately after a boy's face is blackened, which gen- 
erally takes place at daybreak, he takes his bow and arrows 
and goes to the woods, from whence he does not return 
until the usual time of washing his face and eating comes 
on. I have accompanied boys for several years at different 
times, when their faces were blackened, and I never knew 
a single instance of their eating or drinking while in this 
situation, or without the knowledge of their parents. 

12. Indian Life and Customs: On the Warpath 

(Reference same as above, pp- 89-91.) 

When a warrior wishes to go to war, he informs one or 
two of his most intimate friends of his intentions and asks 
them to join him. The war party is then formed by invit- 
ing as many men as they wish to compose it. Their inten- 
tions are kept secret from all the rest, as the person who 
is to command the party wishes such men only as will at 
all times obey his orders. After the party is complete 



When Englishmen First Came 33 

they leave the village secretly at night. When they en- 
camp, the captain or commander places the oldest men in 
front of the camp, and the youngest in the rear ; the former 
do all the hunting for the party and keep up a strict watch 
for the enemy; the latter do all the cooking, making the 
fires, mending the moccasins, etc. Each party has a small 
budget, which they call the war budget, which contains 
something belonging to each person in the party, and repre- 
senting some wild animal, such as a snake's skin, a buffalo's 
tail, a wolf's head, a minim's skin, or the feathers of some 
extraordinary bird. This budget is considered sacred, and 
is always carried by some one chosen for that purpose. 
This person always marches in front and leads the party 
to the enemy. He is never passed on the march by any of 
the company while he has the budget on his back. When 
the party halts, the budget is laid on the ground in front 
of them, and no person is permitted to pass it without' or- 
ders from the proper authority. No person is allowed to 
sit, or lay his pack on a log, neither is any one allowed to 
talk of women while they are going toward an enemy. 
When a four-legged animal is killed by the party, the heart 
is carefully preserved by a person appointed for that pur- 
pose. When they encamp, a fire is built alongside the war 
budget, and the heart is cut in small pieces and burned. 
The sticks or spits on which they roast their meat are split 
half down the middle, and the meat is placed in the split ; 
the stick is sharpened at but one end, and is stuck in the 
ground. No person is allowed to step across the fire, nor 
to walk around it in any other way than that in which the 
sun traverses. 

It will readily be imagined that the order observed 
among the Indians when going to war is nicely calculated 
to prevent accident or surprises, and to keep up good dis- 
cipline. When the enemy is to be attacked, the war budget 
is opened, and each man takes out his skin, or corpenyomer, 
(as it is called) or war bag, and ties it on that part of his 
body which he is directed to do by his ancestors in such 
like cases. 

3—1643 



34 Readings in Indiana History 

When an Indian attacks liis enemy, he is generally 
stripped naked (except what is called his breech-cloth and 
moccasins). His body is painted in different colors, though 
generally red. After the action is over, each person re- 
turns his war bag to the commander of the party, who takes 
the same skin or cloth that they were formerly wrapped in, 
and carefully wraps them up again, and gives the budget 
to the man who took the first prisoner or scalp, and who 
now leads the party home in triumph. This is considered 
a mark of his bravery in the nation, and consequently a 
great honor is attached to it. Should tliere be more than 
one of tlie enemy killed or taken prisoner, the person who 
gets the first scalp or takes the first prisoner is entitled to 
the first honor. 

When the party returns home, the war budget is hung in 
front of the door of the person who carried it on the march 
against the enemy. It is suffered to remain there thirty 
or forty days, and some one of the party goes every night 
and sings and dances where it hangs; particularly those 
who have taken a prisoner or scalp. 

When the person who commanded the party thinks 
proper, he assembles the party, and a feast is prepared by 
them for all the people of the village. They sing and dance 
all night. Those of the party wdio did the enemy most 
damage serve out the feast to the asseml)ly. After this is 
over, the war budget is opened by the connnander, and eacli 
person of the party takes out his corpenyomer, or war bag, 
and the party is dissolved. 

13. Indian Ceremony of Adoption 

(Reference same as above, pp. 92-93.) 
When an Indian loses one of his relations, he believes 
that, if his place is not filled by adoption, more of his 
friends will die. If the deceased is a male, one of the most 
intimate male friends of the departed is chosen to fill the 
vacancy; if a female, one of her most intimate friends is 
chosen. If the deceased is a person of respectability, it 
frequently happens that two persons are chosen to fill the 
vacancy. After everything is in readiness, the person, or 



When Englishmen First Came 35 

persons, to be adopted are sent for, and the ceremony be- 
gins. If the deceased was a warrior, the adoption is per- 
formed by the warriors of the village, who assemble at the 
house of the deceased. 

They commence by each dancing the war-dance and sing- 
ing the war-song in rotation. The warriors go through all 
the different maneuvers that are customary when engaged 
with the enemy; after which, each one reports to the as- 
sembly the number of actions he has been in, and the num- 
ber of scalps and prisoners he has taken. 

While the warriors are dancing, they occasionally give 
tlie same yells and repeat the same words they did when 
they were in battle. All the while a constant yelling is kept 
up by the assembly. When a vv^arrior has gone through 
such of his exploits as he thinks proper, he hands the war- 
club to some other warrior, and sits down. The other rises 
up and repeats as many of his war achievements as he 
thinks proper. In this way the dance is continued until 
each warrior of the village is called upon to relate his war 
exploits. Some are called on two or three times during the 
dance. The assembly is then dismissed by the speaker for 
the friend of the deceased, who tells them that the hearts 
of the relations of the dead are glad. The person or per- 
sons adopted sit among the relatives of the deceased dur- 
ing the dance. After the dance is over, they are invited by 
their new relations to a private place, where they receive 
everything that belonged to the deceased, also the articles 
that were given by neighbors by way of donation in adop- 
tion. They are then told that they are one of the family, 
and must consider themselves as such, and that they are 
entitled to tlie same authority and respect in the nation that 
the person wdiose f)lace they fill had, when living. 

When a common man or woman or child dies, the adop- 
tion is exhibited by a few persons of both sexes who play 
at some favorite game of the deceased ; if a heroic man dies, 
tliey shoot at a mark, run a foot-race, or play some other 
game. If a woman, they play some game of which she was 
fondest. 



36 Readings in Indiana History 

14. The French in Indiana: Post Vincennes 

(From Thwaites' Early Western Trarcls, I, pp. 137-143; account by Col. 

George Croghan [1765]. Copyright. By permission of the Arthur 

H. Clark Company, Cleveland.) 

Pontiac's host in 1763 swept like a storm over the territory of 
Indiana. Not an Englisliman Avas left in the whole region. The 
Treaty of Paris had been signed February 10, 1763, and it placed 
upon England the government of the territory. The French still 
held command at Fort de Chartres (Kaskaskia) until October 9, 
1765, when St. Ange, the French commandant, gave way to Captain 
Sterling and the Forty -second Highlanders. 

It was in an earlier attempt, made in the year 1765, to take pos- 
session of the French posts that Colonel Croghan was captured and 
taken to Vincennes, Ouiatanon, and Post Miami. Under orders 
from General Gage, then commanding in America, he had set out 
from Fort Pitt, May 15, 1765. 

He passed down the Ohio without incident, writing descriptions 
of the land on the way, for he was also an agent for a prospective 
land company. Near the mouth of the Wabash, on June 8, he was 
fired on by a skulking war party of Musquattimes and Kickapoos. 
After plundering his goods they carried Croghan a prisoner to 
Vincennes where he was released, though they compelled him to go, 
half-captive, to Ouiatanon. From there he proceeded on to Post 
Miami, Detroit, and back to Fort Pitt. 

Col. George Croghan, the author of this selection, spent his life 
in the Indian country and was said by Sir William Johnson to be 
the best man in America to deal with the Western Indians. 

July 6, 1765. — We arrived at the mouth of the Ouabache, 
where we found a breast-work erected, supposed to be done 
by the Indians. The mouth of this river is about two hun- 
dred yards wide, and in its course runs through one of the 
finest countries in the world, the lands being exceedingly 
rich, and well watered; here hemp might be raised in im- 
mense quantities. All the bottoms, and almost the whole 
country abound with great plenty of the white and red mul- 
berry tree. These trees are to be found in great plenty, in 
all places between the mouth of the Scioto and the Ouabache : 
the soil of the latter affords this tree in plenty as far as the 
Ouiatanon, and some few on the Miami River. Several 
large fine islands lie in the Ohio, opposite the mouth of the 



When Englishmen First Came 37 

Ouabache, the banks of which are high, and consequently 
free from inundations ; hence Ave proceeded down the river 
about six miles to encamp, as I judged some Indians were 
sent to waylay us, and came to a place called the Old Shaw- 
nee Village, some of that nation having formerly lived there. 
In this day's proceedings we came about seventy-six miles. 
8th. — At day-break we were attacked by a party of In- 
dians, consisting of eighty warriors of the Kickapoos and 
Musquattimes, who killed two of my men and three Indians, 
wounded myself and all the rest of my party, except two 
white men and one Indian; then made myself and all the 
white men prisoners, plundering us of everything we had. 
A deputy of the Shawnees who was shot through the thigh, 
having concealed himself in the woods for a few minutes 
after he was wounded — not knowing but they were south- 
ern Indians, who are always at war with the northward 
Indians — after discovering what nation they were, came up 
to them and made a very bold speech, telling them that the 
whole northward Indians would join in taking revenge for 
the insult and murder of their people ; this alarmed those 
savages very much, who began excusing themselves, saying 
their fathers, the French, had spirited them up, telling them 
that the Indians were coming with a body of southern In- 
dians to take their country from them, and enslave them; 
that it was this that induced them to commit this outrage. 
After dividing the plunder, (they left great part of the 
heaviest effects behind, not being able to carry them,) they 
set off with us to their village at Ouiatanon, in a great 
hurry, being in dread of pursuit from a large party of In- 
dians they suspected were coming after me. Our course 
was through a thick woody country, crossing a great many 
swamps, morasses, and beaver ponds. We traveled tlds 
day about forty- two miles. 

15th.— We set out very early, and about one o'clock 
came to the Ouabache, within six or seven miles of Post 
Vincent.« On my arrival there, I found a village of about 
eighty or ninety French families settled on the east side 
of this river , being one of the finest situations that can be 

« Post Vincennes, also sometimes An Post, Post Saint Vincent. 



38 Readings in Indiana History 

found. The country is level and clear, and the soil very 
rich, producing wheat and tobacco. I thinlv the latter pre- 
ferable to that of Virginia or Maryland. The French in- 
habitants hereabouts, are an idle, lazy people, a parcel of 
renegadoes from Canada, and are much worse than the 
Indians. They took a secret pleasure at our misfortunes, 
and the moment we arrived they came to the Indians, ex- 
changing trifles for their valuable plunder. As the savages 
took from me a considerable quantity of gold and silver in 
specie, the French traders extorted ten half Johannes" from 
them for one pound of vermilion. Here is likewise an In- 
dian village of the Piankishaws,'^ who were much dis- 
pleased with the party that took me, telling them that ''our 
and your chiefs are gone to make peace, and you have begun 
a war, for which our women and children will have reason 
to cry." 

Post Vincent is a place of great consequence for trade, 
being a fine hunting country all along tlie Ouabache, and 
too far for the Indians, which reside hereabouts, to go either 
to the Illinois, or elsewhere, to fetch their necessaries. 

16th. — We were obliged to stay here to get some little 
apparel made up for us, and to buy some horses for our 
journey to Ouiatanon, promising payment at Detroit, for 
we could not procure horses from the French for hire; 
though we were graatly fatigued, and our spirits much ex- 
hausted in our late march, they would lend us no assistance. 

15. The French in Indiana: Oiiiatenon 

(Refereuce same as above.) 
July 23, 1765. — Early in the morning we set out through 
a fine meadow, then some clear woods ; in the afternoon came 
into a very large bottom on the Ouabache, within six miles 
of ( )uiatanon ; here I met several chiefs of the Kickapoos 
and Musquattimes,'' who spoke to their young men who had 
taken us, and reprimanded thom sevc^rely for what they had 

" Jolianuos, a Portugui^sc coin current in tlio country al)out tliis time, of tlie 
value of about nine dollars. 

^'Piankishaws were a tribe settled near Vincennes. 

"Also called Mascoutins ; a wandering trilie whose home was in Southern Wis- 
consin. They were related ^o the Kickapoos. 



When Englishmen First Came 39 

done to me, after wliicli tliey returned with us to their 
village, and delivered us all to their chiefs. 

The distance from Post Vincent to Ouiatanon is two 
hundred and ten miles. This place is situated on the 
Ouabache. About fourteen French families are living in 
the fort, which stands on the north side of the river. The 
Kickapoos and the Musquattimes, whose warriors had 
taken us, live near the fort, on the same side of the river, 
where they have two villages; and the Ouiatanons have a 
village on the south side of the river. On our arrival at 
this post, several of the Ouiatanons with whom I had been 
formerly acquainted, came to visit me, and seemed greatly 
concerned at what had happened. They went immediately 
to the Kickapoos and Musquattimes, and charged them to 
take the greatest care of us until their chiefs should arrive 
from the Illinois, where they had gone to meet me some 
time ago, and who were entirely ignorant of this affair, and 
said the French had spirited up this jjarty to go and 
strike us. 

The French have great influence over these Indians, 
and never fail in telling them many lies to tlie ijrejudice 
of his majesty's [King of England] interest, by making the 
English nation odious and hateful to them. I had the 
greatest difficulty in removing these prejudices. As these 
Indians are a weak, foolish, and credulous people, they are 
easily imposed upon by a designing people, who have led 
them hitherto as they pleased. The French tell them that 
as the southern Indians had for two years past made war 
upon them, it must have been at the instigation of the En- 
glish, who are a bad people. However, I have been for- 
tunate enough to remove their prejudice, and, in a great 
measure, their suspicions against the English. The coun- 
try hereabouts is exceedingly pleasant, being open and 
clear for many miles ; the soil very rich and well watered ; 
all plants have a quick vegetation, and the climate is very 
temperate through the winter. This post has always been 
a very considerable trading place. The great plenty of 
furs taken in this country, induced the French to estab- 
lish this post, which was the first on the Ouabache, and by 



40 Readings in Indiana History 

a very advantageous trade they have been richly recom- 
pensed for their labor. 

On the south side of the Ouabache runs a big bank, in 
which are several fine coal mines, and behind this bank, is 
a very large meadow, clear for several miles. It is sur- 
prising what false information we have had respecting this 
country; some mention these spacious and beautiful mead- 
ows as large and barren savannahs. I apprehend it has 
been the artifice of the French to keep us ignorant of the 
country. These meadows bear fine wild grass, and wild 
hemp ten or twelve feet high, which, if properly manufac- 
tured, would prove as good, and answer all the purposes of 
the hemp we cultivate. 

16. The French in Indiana: At the Miami Village ^'' 

(Reference same as above.) 

August 1, 1765. — We arrived at the carrying place be- 
tween the rivers Miamis and the Ouabache, which is about 
nine miles long in dry seasons, but not above half that 
length in freshets. The head of the Ouabache is about forty 
miles from this place, and after a course of about seven hun- 
dred and sixty miles from the head spring, through one 
of the finest countries in the Avorld, it empties itself into 
the Ohio. The navigation from hence to Ouiatanon, is very 
difficult in low water, on account of many rapids and rifts ; 
but in freshets, which generally happen in spring and fall, 
batteaux or canoes, will pass, without difficulty, from here 
to Ouiatanon in three days, which is about two hundred 
and forty miles, and by land about two hundred and ten 
miles. From Ouiatanon to Post Vincent, and thence to the 
Ohio, batteaux and canoes may go at any season of the 
year. Throughout the whole course of the Ouabache the 
banks are pretty high, and in the river are a great many 
islands. Many shrubs and trees are found here unknown 
to us. 

Within a mile of the Twightwee village, I was met by 
the chiefs of that nation, who received us very kindly. The 
most part of these Indians knew me, and conducted me to 

1' On the site of what is now Fort Wayne. 



When Englishmen First Came 41 

their village, where they immediately hoisted an English 
flag that I had formerly given them at Fort Pitt. The next 
day they held a council, after which they gave me up all 
the English prisoners they had; then they made several 
speeches, in all of which they expressed the great pleasure 
it gave them, to see the unhappy differences which em- 
broiled the several nations in a war^' with their brethren, 
the English, were now so near a happy conclusion, and that 
peace was established in their country. 

The Twightwee village is situated on both sides of a 
river called the St. Joseph. This river, where it falls into 
the Miami river, about a quarter of a mile from this place, 
is one hundred yards wide, on the east side of which stands 
a stockade fort, somewhat ruinous. 

The Indian village consists of about forty or fifty cabins, 
besides nine or ten French houses, a runaway colony from 
Detroit, during the late Indian war; they were concerned 
in this war, and being afraid of punishment, came to this 
post, where, ever since, they have spirited up the Indians 
against the English. All the French residing here are a 
lazy indolent people, fond of breeding mischief, and spirit- 
ing up the Indians against the English, and should by no 
means be suffered to remain here. The country is pleas- 
ant, the soil rich and well-watered. After several confer- 
ences with these Indians, and their delivering me up all the 
English prisoners they had, [I started for Detroit.] 

17. French Life on the Wabash 

(From Indiana, A Redemption from Hhircrii, by Jacob Piait Dunn, Jr. 
pp. 102-108. By perinis.sion of riougliton-Mifflin Compauy. 

Within this little State of twenty-four leagues square 
our French colonists of Vincennes held their residences, 
and passed the greater part of their contented, careless 
lives. Their agriculture was of a very primitive style. 
Fertilization was never thought of. In winter they ordi- 
narily carted the accumulations of manure out on the ice of 
the streams, on which their settlements were invariably 

11 The French and Indian War (17r)4-170l'. i Iiad recently ended, and the war 
with Pontiac (1763-1765) was on the point of closing. 



42 Readings in Indiana History 

made, to be washed away in the spring; and it was asserted 
by their early American neighbors that in some cases, barns 
were removed when the piles of manure had been allowed 
to accumulate until it had become more difficult to remove 
them than to move the building. The plow was of wood, 
except the share. Its long beam and handles extended ten 
or twelve feet, and it had a wooden mould-board. In front 
were two wheels, also of wood, of different sizes; a small 
one to run on the unplowed side, and a larger one in the 
furrow. There were neither chains nor whiffletree; oxen 
were fastened by a pole which had a hinged attachment to 
the beam ; and very good though shallow plowing was per- 
formed by this rude but ingenious implement. Both oxen 
and horses were used in the various operations. The har- 
ness was very simple, and constructed of withes or twisted 
raw-hide. No yoke was used, but a rope of the kind men- 
tioned was passed around the oxen's horns and they pushed 
with their heads. Other descriptions of the plow and the 
plowing varied slightly from this. Governor Reynolds 
says: ''They had no coulter and had a large wooden 
mould-board. The handles were short and almost perpen- 
dicular; the beam was nearly straight, and rested on an 
axle supported by two small wheels ; the wheels were low, 
and the beam was so fixed on the axle, with a chain or rope 
of raw-hide, that the plow could be placed deep or shallow 
in the ground. The wheels made the plow unsteady. The 
French settlers seldom plowed with horses, but used oxen. 
It is the custom of the French everywdiere to yoke oxen 
by the horns, and not by the neck. Oxen can draw as much 
by the horns as by the neck ; but it looks more savage. The 
ox-yoke was almost a straight stick of wood, cut at the ends 
to fit the horns of the ox, and was tied to the horns with a 
strap of raw-hide." When horses were used they were 
driven tandem. The only agricultural instrument besides 
the plow was a heavy iron hoe with a long shank, such as 
was in use among the Indians long after the French had 
adopted lighter tools of American make. 

The cultivation was rude, but the rich soil, then in its 
virgin strength, produced crops that supplied all the needs 



When Englishmen First Came 43 

of the settlers, and left abundance for export ^vlien prices 
justified exi^ortation. Nearly every year barges loaded 
with flour, pork, tallow, hides and leather, passed down the 
Mississippi to New Orleans, from which point the cargoes 
were reshipped to France and the West Indies ; in return 
came sugar, metal-goods, and European fabrics. "About 
the year 1746 there was a great scarcity of i3rovisions at 
New Orleans, and the French settlements at the Illinois, 
small as they then were, sent thither, in one winter, up- 
wards of eight hundred thousand weight of flour," It is 
recorded that one farmer in the Illinois furnished the king's 
magazine eighty-six thousand pounds of flour, and this was 
but part of the crop. Indian corn was not so much culti- 
vated as the wheat, and what was raised was used for feed- 
ing cattle and hogs. Some was consumed in the shape of 
hominy, but corn-bread was an unknown article of diet. 
Mills of various kinds were in use among the French set- 
tlers from the earliest times, as also among the Indians who 
adopted agriculture. 

The one vehicle of the French settlements was the 
caleche or cart, a light, two-wheeled alfair without tires or 
iron-work of any kind.^- Tlie same is in use in Normandy 
and the French provinces now; and it is still used, in the 
wilder parts of Canada and the Northwest, by the fur- 
traders and the Indians. In some of them the bed re- 
sembled a dry-goods box; in others it was a platform 
surrounded by a low railing ; in others the railing was along 
the sides only. It was used for all kinds of farm work, 
hauling, and transportation. It had no seat. When used 
as a carriage, a buffalo robe, spread on the floor, served 
as a cushion ; or, if the owner made pretensions to aristoc- 
racy, chairs were placed in it. For traveling through the 
wilderness, it was, and is, superior to a four-wheeled 
vehicle, but for farm use it could not compete with the 
wagon ; and so it disappeared, with many other things once 
common to tlie Mississippi valley, so long ago that scarcely 
the memory of it remains wliere it once creaked and 
groaned over the rough trails. 



'- The Americans sometimes called them "barefooted wagons. 



44 Readings in Indiana History 

The houses varied in construction with the age of the 
settlements. In 1727, the missionary, Du Poisson, wrote: 
''A man with his wife, or his associate, clears a small sec- 
tion, builds him a house with four forked sticks, which he 
covers with bark, plants some corn and rice for his food ; 
another year he raises more provisions, and begins a plan- 
tation of tobacco ; and if the family attains to the possession 
of three or four negroes, behold the extent to which he can 
reach. This is what they call a plantation and a planter. ' ' 
The next advance in architecture, which was as far as the 
poorer class ever went, was the construction of log-houses 
in the mode called poteaux au terre}'-^ In some of these the 
posts which formed the walls were set on end in trenches, 
close one to another, and the interstices chinked with a mud 
mortar mixed with sticks, straw, or moss. In others the 
posts were grooved on the sides and set three of four feet 
apart, the intervening space being filled with puncheons,^ ^ 
laid cross-wise, and fitting in the grooves. The mud was 
then applied and the surface was whitewashed inside and 
out. The roofs were sometimes thatched, sometimes cov- 
ered with strips of bark, or, at a more recent day, covered 
with oak clapboards fastened by wooden pegs. The best 
class of houses, which began to appear in the latter days 
of the French regime, were also built in this manner, or 
occasionally of stone. These were generally one story in 
height, with a loft above, lighted by dormer-windows,^^ 
though occasionally they boasted two full stories. Ladders 
were always placed on the roofs for use in case of fires. 
The piazzas extended around the building. In this class 
of residences the doors were usually in the center of the 
sides, opening into a hall which crossed from front to rear. 
On each side of the hall ^^ere two rooms ; on one side the 
grande chamhre or parlor, and the salle a manger or din- 
ing-room; on the other the cabinet or bed-room, and the 
cuisine or kitchen. No fire was used in the sleeping apart- 
ment. The other rooms were usually heated by open fire- 

^^ Post in the ground. 

" Puncheon, a broad, thick board, rived from a log and smoothed with an ax. 
^^ Dormer-window, a window standing vertically in a projection, built out to 
receive it, from a sloping roof. 



When Englishmen First Came 45 

places, though sometimes luxury reached the height of a 
stove set in the wall between the parlor and dining-room, 
with the doors opening into the latter. 

Adjoining the kitchen was the boulangerie, or bake- 
house, furnished with a brick oven and a trough for knead- 
ing bread. Butter was very seldom seen in one of the old 
French houses, probably on account of the difficulty of mak- 
ing it; they had no churns, and the little butter they used 
was made by shaking the cream in a bottle, or placing it 
in a bowl and beating it with a spoon. The washing was 
done at the nearest stream, whither the clothing was con- 
veyed, and there cleansed by beating it with a mallet, as in 
parts of France at present. The furniture of the house 
was ordinarily rude, though in some houses might be seen 
wardrobes, dressing tables, and rush-bottomed chairs. 
Sometimes an odd bit of silverware, an heir-loom in the 
family, was conspicuously displayed ; and not infrequently, 
a Madonna^*' or a print of the Passion^' appeared on the 
walls. The bed was the object of more attention than any- 
thing else in the line of furniture, for our French settlers 
loved comfort. Feather pillows were universal, and all who 
could possibly afford them had great feather beds spread on 
the rope network of their stilted bedsteads, and covered 
with quilts of bright patchwork. Carpets were unknown, 
but parlor floors were often covered with mats of Indian 
workmanship. About the house was always a garden, in 
which was to be seen a profusion of both vegetables and 
flowers. This was enclosed by a fence of sharpened 
pickets, set close together in the ground. 

^'' Madonna, a painting of the Virgin Mary and tlio infant Jesus. 
" Passion, a painting showing the sufferings of Christ on the Cross or in the 
Garden of Gethsemane. 




)46) 



CHAPTER III 
GEORGE ROGERS CLARK CONQUERS THE NORTHWEST 

The heroic age of Indiana history is the period from 1777 to 
1815. During this period there was continuous war. Indiana was 
in the center of the Imttle-ground. It lay midway hetween Eort 
Pitt and Fort de C-hartres at Old Kaskaskia, and likewise midway 
between Detroit and Kentucky. In its borders lived the strongest 
tribe of savages in the West; and two of the greatest Indian war- 
riors of American history. Little Turtle and Tecumseh, made their 
liomes in Indiana. The French, Spanish, and English offered little 
resistance to the pioneers who came to make their homes in the 
Ohio valley. But the Miami confederacy, made up of a score of 
related trilies, made an enemy worthy of the Americans. The 
Miamis met the regular army four times and defeated it twice. 
The most crushing defeat the regular army had received up to that 
time was delivered by Little Ttirtle to St. Clair's army in 1791. 

Colonel Clark in 1777 recognized that the British at Kaskaskia, 
Vincennes, and Detroit were causing the Indian raids on the Ken- 
tucky frontier. They organized and armed the Indian war parties 
and usually British officers in scarlet uniforms accompanied each 
expedition. INIoreover, the British agents often paid these maraud- 
ing Indians for white prisoners and scalps. Colonel Clark thought 
that by the capture of these posts he could stop this border war. 
Later results showed that he was right. An extensive literature 
has grown up around the exploits of Colonel Clark. The best of 
these books is that written by William H. English, entitled the 
Conquest of the Northwest. The selections given below are from the 
"Memoir" of Colonel Clark and his letter to Governor George 
Mason of Virginia. They are taken from the George Rogers Clark 
Papers as edited by Professor James A. James, of Northwestern 
University. 



(47) 




George Rogers Clark 

From The Xorthwest Under Three Flags. By Charles Moores. Copyright 1900. Used by special 

permission of Harper and Brothers. 



(48) 



George Rogers Clark 49 

18. Clark Prepares for the Expedition (1777) 

(From the Clconjc Rovers Clark Papers, by George Rogers Clark [about 

1791], pp. 218-220.) 

On my arrival in Williamsbnrgli, I remained a consider- 
able time settling the acts of tlie Kentucky militia and mak- 
ing observations of everything I saw or heard that would 
lead me to the knowledge of the disposition of those in 
power. Bnrgoyne's army having been captured and things 
seeming to wear a pleasing aspect, on the 10th of December 
I communicated my views to Governor Patrick Henry. At 
first view he appeared to be fond of it but to detach a party 
off at so great a distance (although the services performed 
might be of great utility) appeared daring and hazardous 
as nothing but secrecy would probably give success to the 
enterprise. To lay the matter before the assembly, then 
sitting, would be dangerous, as it would soon be known 
throughout the frontier and probably the first prisoner 
taken by the Indians would give the alarm which would end 
in the certain destruction of the party. He had several 
private councils composed of select gentlemen, and, after 
making every inquiry into my proposed plan of operation 
(and particularly that of a retreat in case of misfortune, 
which I intended, across the Mississippi into Spanish terri- 
tory), the expedition was resolved on. As an encourage- 
ment to those who would engage in service, an instrument 
of writing was signed wherein those gentlemen promised to 
use their influence to procure from the assembly three hun- 
dred acres of land each in case of success. Governor and 
council so warmly engaged in the success of the enterprise 
that I had very little trouble in getting matters adjusted, 
and on the second day of January, 1778, I received my in- 
structions and received 1,200 £ for use of the expedition 
and an order on Pittsburg for boats, ammunition, etc. 
Finding from the governor's conversation to me in general 
upon the subject that he did not wish an implicit attention 
to his instructions should prevent my executing anything 
that would manifestly tend to the good of the public, on the 
fourth, I set forward clothed with all the authority I wished 
for. I advanced to Major William B. Smith 150 £ to re- 

4—1643 



50 Readings in Indiana History 

cruit men on the Holston and to meet me in Kentucky. 
Captain Leonard Helm, of Fau(|nire county, and Captain 
Joseph Bowman, of Frederick county, were to raise each a 
company and on the 1st of February arrive at Redstone Old 
Fort. Being now in tlie country where all my arrange- 
ments were to be made I appointed Captain William Har- 
rod and many other officers of the recruiting service and 
contracted for flour and other stores that I wanted. Gen- 
eral Hand, then commander at Pittsburg, promised a 
supply of articles I had orders for. 

19. Desertion at tlie Ohio Falls 

(From tlie (Ironjc Ro(/rrs Clarl- I'diicr^. \\\\. 221-22.S. ) 

I moved on to the Falls and viewed the situation but 
reflecting that my secret instructions were yet (unknown) 
even to the party with me, and not knowing what would be 
the consequence when they were divulged, I wished to keep 
everything as much as possible until we were joined by the 
whole. I observed the little island of about seven acres 
opposite to where the town of Louisville now stands seldom 
or never was entirely covered with water. I resolved to 
take possession and fortify it which I did on {blank in MS) 
of June, dividing the island among the families for gar- 
dens. These families that followed me I now found to be 
of real service, as they were of little expense, and, with the 
invalids, would keep possession of this little post until we 
should be able to occupy the main shore, which happened 
in the fall. On the arrival of Colonel Bowman, part of the 
militia, and several of the gentlemen of the country, we 
found on examination that we were much weaker than [we] 
expected. The Indian raids continued without intermis- 
sion and became more numerous the longer they continued, 
as the British continued to add to their strength by excit- 
ing others to join them. Under those circumstances we 
could not think of leaving the posts of Kentucky defense- 
less believing that it was better to run a great risk with 
one party than to divide our forces in such a manner as to 
hazard the loss of both. Of course we agreed to take but 
one complete company and part of another from Kentucky, 



George Rogers Clark 51 

expecting that tliey Avoiild be replaced by troops we yet ex- 
pected from Major Smith. Those were our deliberations. 
After my making known my instructions almost every gen- 
tleman warmly espoused the enterprise and plainly saw the 
utility of it, and supposed they saw the salvation of Ken- 
tucky almost in their reach but surely repined that we were 
not strong enough to put it beyond all doubt. The soldiery 
in general debated on the subject but determined to follow 
their officers. Some were alarmed at the thought of being 
taken at so great a distance into the enemy's country. 
Some dissatisfaction was discovered in Captain Dillard's 
company, consequently the boats Avere all secured and sen- 
tinels placed Avhere it was thought there was a possibility 
of their wading from the island. My design was to take 
from the island down the (river) on our way those who 
would attemijt to desert, but I was outgeneraled by {blank 
in MS ), their lieutenant, whom I had previously conceived 
a very tolerable opinion of. They had, by swimming in the 
day, discovered that the channel opposite their camjj might 
be waded and a little before day himself and the greater 
part of the company slipt down the bank and got to the 
opposite shore before they were discovered by the sentinels. 
Vexed at the idea of their escape in the manner they did, as 
one of my principal motives for having taken post on the 
island was to prevent desertion, and intending to set out the 
next day, I was undetermined for a few minutes what to do, 
as it might take a party several days to overtake [them]. 
Having no distrust of those that remained, the example was 
(not) immediately dangerous but might prove so hereafter, 
and recollecting that there was a number of horses belong- 
ing to gentlemen from Harrodsburg, I ordered a strong 
party to pursue them and the foot and horse to relieve each 
other regularly and to put to death every man in their 
power who would not surrender. They overhauled them 
(the deserters) in about 20 miles. The deserters, dis- 
covering them at a distance, scattered in the woods. Only 7 
or 8 were taken ; the rest made their way to the different 
posts ; many not woodsmen almost perished. The poor lieu- 
tenant and the few that remained with liim, after suffering 



52 Readings in Indiana History 

almost all that could be felt from hunger and fatigue, ar- 
rived at Harrodstown. [The people there] having heard of 
his conduct would not for some time suffer him to come 
into their houses nor give him anything to eat. 

20. Capture of Kaskaskia 

(From tbe George Rogers Clark Papers, pp. 119-122.) 

On the evening of the 4th of July we got within three 
miles of the town, Kaskaskia. Having a river of the same 
name to cross to the town, after making ourselves ready for 
anything that might haiDpen, we marched after night to a 
farm that was on the same side of the river about a mile 
above the town, took the family prisoners, and found plenty 
of boats to cross in ; and in two hours transported ourselves 
to the other shore with the greatest silence. 

I learned that they had some suspicion of being attacked 
and had made some preparation, keeping out spies, but 
making no discoveries they had got off their guard. I im- 
mediately divided my little army into two divisions, ordered 
one to surround the town, and with the other I broke into 
the fort, and secured the governor, Mr. Rocheblave. In 
fifteen minutes I had every street secured, sending runners 
through the town, ordering the people on pain of death to 
keep close to their houses. This they observed and before 
daylight I had the whole town disarmed. Nothing could excel 
the confusion these people seemed to be in, they having been 
taught to expect nothing but savage treatment from the 
Americans ; and giving up all for lost, their lives were all 
they could dare beg for, which they did with the greatest 
fervency. They were willing to be slaves to save their 
families. I told them that it did not suit me to give an 
answer at that time. They repaired to their houses trem- 
bling as if they were led to execution. My principles would 
not let me distress such a number of people, unless through 
policy it was necessary. A little reflection convinced me 
that it was my interest to attach them to me, according to 
my first plan; for the town of Cohoes and St. Vincent and 
the numerous tribes of Indians attached to the French were 
yet to be influenced, for I was too weak to treat them in 



George Rogers Clark 53 

any other way. T sent for all tlie principal men of the 
town, who came in as if to a tribunal that was to determine 
their fate forever, cursing their fortune that they were not 
apprised of us in time to have defended themselves. I 
told them that I was sorry to find that they had been taught 
to harbor so base an opinion of the Americans and their 
cause, and explained the nature of the dispute to them in 
as clear a light as I was capable of. I told them it was 
certain that they were a conquered people and by the fate 
of war they were at my mercy and that our plan was to 
make those we reduced free instead of enslaving them as 
they imagined ; that if I could have surety of their zeal and 
attachment to the American cause, they should immediately 
secure all the privileges of our government and have their 
property secured to them ; that it was only to stop further 
effusion of innocent blood by the savages imder the influ- 
ence of their governor, that made them an object of our 
attention. No sooner had they heard this than joy sparkled 
in their eyes, and (they) fell into transports of joy that 
really surprised me. As soon as they were a little moder- 
ated, they told me that they had always been kept in the 
dark as to the dispute between England and America ; that 
they had never heard anything before but what was preju- 
dicial and intended to incense them against the Ameri- 
cans ; that they were now convinced that it was the cause 
they ought to espouse; that they should be happy of an 
opportunity to convince me of their zeal, and think them- 
selves the happiest people in the world if they were united 
with the Americans ; and begged that I would believe what 
they said their real sentiments. In order to be more cer- 
tain of their sincerity, I told them that an oath of fidelity 
was required from the citizens, and, to give them time to 
reflect on it, I should not administer it for a few days. In 
the meantime any of them that chose, except two or three 
particular persons, were at liberty to leave the country with 
their families. They might repair to their families and 
conduct themselves as usual without any dread. The priest 
that had lately come from Canada had made himself a little 
acquainted with our dispute (the American Revolution), 



54 Readings in Indiana History 

contrary to the principle of his brother in Canada, and was 
rather prejudiced in favor of us. He asked if I woukl give 
him liberty to perform his duty in his church. I told him 
that I had nothing to do with churches more than to defend 
them from insult ; that by the laws of the state his religion 
had as great privileges as any other. This seemed to com- 
plete their happiness. They returned to their families, and 
in a few minutes the scene of mourning and distress was 
turned to an excess of joy, nothing else being seen nor 
heard. 

31. Father Gibault's Mission to Viiicennes 

(From the (Icorf/c Roijcrs Chirk I'upcrs, \)\). 237-238.) 
Father Pierre Gibault was the pastor of the Catholic churches 
at Kaskaskia, Cahokia, and Vineennes. He was one of those rare 
beings whom education and experience with the world have raised 
above selfishness and i)artisanshii>. History has few more beautiful 
characters than this early priest on the Wal^ash. 

Everything in this quarter having a promising aj^pear- 
ance, Post Vineennes never being out of my mind, and 
from some things that I had learnt having some reason to 
suspect that Mr. Jebault (Gibault) the priest was inclined 
to the American interest previous to our arrival in the 
country and now the great respect showed him having great 
influence over the people at this period, St. Vincent also 
being under his jurisdiction, I made no doubt of his in- 
tegrity to us. I sent for him and had a long conference 
with him on the subject of St. Vineennes. In answer to all 
my queries he informed me that he did not think it worth 
while to cause any military preparation to be made at the 
falls for the attack on St. Vineennes, although the place 
was strong and a great number of Indians in its neighbor- 
hood; that to his knowledge Governor Abbot had a few 
weeks before left the place on some business to De Troit; 
that he expected that when the inhabitants were fully ac- 
quainted with what had past at the Illinois and the present 
happiness of their friends, and made fully acquainted with 
the nature of the war, that their sentiments would greatly 
change ; that he knew that his appearance there would have 



George Rogers Clark 55 

great weight even among the savages ; that if it was agree- 
able with me he would take this business upon himself and 
had no doubt of his being able to bring that place over to 
the American interest without my being at the trouble of 
marching trooj^s against it; that his business being alto- 
gether spiritual he wished that another person might be 
charged with the temporal part of the embassy, but that he 
would privately direct the whole. He named Doctor La- 
font as his associate. This was perfectly agreeable to what 
I had been secretly aiming at for some days. The plan was 
immediately settled and the two doctors with their intended 
retinue, among whom I had a spy, set about preparing for 
their journey and set out on the 14th of July. Mr. Gibault 
and party arrived safely and after their spending a day 
or two in explaining matters to the people, they universally 
acceded to the proposal (except a few Europeans that were 
left by Mr. Abbot, who immediately left the country) and 
went in a body to the church where the oath of allegiance 
was administered to them in the most solemn manner. An 
officer was elected and the fort immediately taken posses- 
sion of and the American flag displayed to the astonishment 
of the Indians and everything settled far beyond our most 
sanguine hopes. 

22. Capture of Ouiataiioii 

(From tho flcorgc Roacrs Clark Paprrfi. jv. KIO.) 
As soon as Colonel Ilamilton at Detroit learned of the capture 
of Kaskaslda and Vincennes he sent agents in all directions to 
gather in his Indian allies for an attack on Clark. One of these, 
named Celoron, a French fur trader, was stationed at Ouiatanon. 
He was causing nnich annoyance to Captain Helm at Vincennes. 
The following selection from Clark's letter to George Mason de- 
scribes the attempt made to capture Celoron. 

One of the British agents residing at Oueaugh, (Ouia- 
tanon,) about eighty leagues above St. Vincent, hurt our 
growing interest much, the Indians in that quarter being 
inclined to desert the British interest, but in some measure 
being kept from their good intentions by that person. I 
resolved if possible to take him off, and sent a detachment 



56 Readings in Indiana History 

of men from Kaskaskia imder command of Lieutenant 
Bailey to join Captain Helm at St. Vincent and if possible 
surprise liim. The captain with about one hundred men in 
number, part French militia and Indians, set out by water. 
The agent hearing of it collected a few savages from the 
neighborhood whom he could trust in order to give battle 
(the Indians in general being neutral). But a few days be- 
fore the captain arrived, Mr. Celoron thought proper to 
make his escape, leaving his friendly Indians in the fort. 
Being assembled in a grand council to determine what was 
best to be done, neglecting to shut the gate or keep sentinels 
(not supposing the enemies to be so near) in the height of 
their deliberations Captains Helm and Bailey (and) his 
small party entered the fort and ordered them to surrender 
before they were apprised [warned], about forty in num- 
ber being made prisoners. The captains made a valuable 
treaty and gave them their liberty. This stroke completed 
our interest on the Wabash. 

23. Viiiceiuies Retaken by the British 

( From the George Rogers Clark Papers, pp. 176-180 ; account by Henby 

Hamilton [17811.) 

The reputation of tlie British was well-nigh mined among the 
Indians by the exploit of Colonel Clark. As soon as Colonel Hamil- 
ton learned of Clark's success he began to gather his red warriors 
to drive Clark out. The following account was written by Hamil- 
ton, and is a part of his official report to the government at London. 
The report was delayed because he was kept about two years in 
jail at Williamsburg, Virginia. 

On the 6th of August, 1778, intelligence was brought me 
by Mr. Francis Maisonville of the attack on the Illinois 
[posts] by Colonel Clark, the shameful treatment of Mon- 
sieur de Rocheblave, who was laid in irons and put in a 
place where hogs had been kept, ankle deep in filth, the in- 
dignities offered Madame de Rocheblave, the destruction of 
his property, and so on. 

On the 7tli of October, the various necessaries for a 
winter movement of 600 miles being provided, by the activi- 
ty and good-will of Captains Lernoult and Grant, the latter 



George Rogers Clark ^7 

of whom attended to everytliing' afloat, and by the assist- 
ance of Major Hay and Mr. Fleming the commissary, we 
struck our tents and embarked with one field piece [small 
cannon] which was all could be spared from the garrison. 

On the 24th we arrived at the Miamis' town after the 
usual fatigues attending such a navigation, the water being 
remarkably low. Here we met several tribes of the In- 
dians previously summoned to meet here, and held several 
conferences, made them presents, and dispatched messen- 
gers to the Shawn ees, as well as the nations on our route, 
inviting them to join us, or at least watch the motions of 
the rebels upon the frontiers; for which purpose I sent 
them ammunition. 

In our progress down the Ouabache difficulties in- 
creased; the setting in of the frost lowered the river; the 
floating ice cut the men as they worked in the water to haul 
the boats over rocks and shoals ; our batteaux [boats] were 
damaged, and had to be repeatedly unloaded, calked and 
payed ; 97,000 lbs. of provisions and stores had to be carried 
by the men, in which the Indians assisted cheerfully, when 
the boats were to be lightened. It was sometimes a day's 
work to get the distance of half a league. It was necessary 
to stop frequently at the Indian villages, to have confer- 
ence with them, furnish them with necessaries, and engage 
a few to accompany us. At length we got into a good depth 
of water, a fall of rain having raised the river. This ad- 
vantage was succeeded by fresh difficulties, the frost becom- 
ing so intense as to freeze the river quite across. However, 
by hard labor we made our way. Now approaching within 
a few days' journey of St. Vincennes, our reconnoitering 
party brought in a lieutenant and three men, sent from 
Fort Sackville to gain intelligence. The officer had in his 
pocket two commissions, one from Lieutenant Governor 
Abbot, the other from Colonel Clark, and was in the pay 
of Congress. I gave their arms to the Indians, but would 
not proceed rigorously with them, wishing to gain these 
people by lenity, and apprehensive that an instance of 
severity might arouse the ferocity of the Indians, which I 
wished of all things to avoid. Major Hay was detached 



58 Readings in Indiana History 

with orders to fall down the river, and send [word] to the 
principal inhabitants of St. Vincennes acquainting them 
that unless they quitted the rebels and laid down their arms, 
there was no mercy for them. Some chiefs accompanied 
him to conciliate the Piankishaw Indians residing at Vin- 
cennes, and to show the French what they might expect if 
they pretended to resist. 

Major Hay secured the arms, ammunition, and spiritu- 
ous liquors, as soon as the inhabitants laid down their arms. 
The officer who commanded the fort (Captain Helm) being 
deserted by the officers and men, who to the number of 
seventy had formed his garrison, and were in the pay of 
Congress, surrendered his wretched fort on the very day of 
our arrival, being the 17th of December, 1778. 

Thus we employed over 71 days in coming over 600 
miles, which is to be attributed to the extraordinary diffi- 
culties of the way owing to an uncommon drought, and the 
severity of the season. At Ouiatanon the chiefs who had 
received the rebel colors came in to us from their hunting, 
acknowledged their error, and gave up the flags and accused 
Monsieur de Celoron of having deserted them. Besides 
that he never distributed to them the goods entrusted to 
him for the Indians. 

In the fort we found two iron three-pounders, mounted 
on truck carriages, two swivels not mounted, a very small 
quantity of ammunition, and thirty-two stout horses wliich 
had been purchased for Congress, and which I gave to the 
Indians. 

As to the state of the fort we found it a miserable stock- 
ade, without a well, barrack, platform for small arms, or 
even a lock to the gate. Such was the moderation and good 
order observed by the Indians, that not a single person had 
the slenderest cause for complaint, not a shot was fired nor 
any inhabitant injured in person or property. It is re- 
markable that though on our arrival at this place our num- 
ber was increased to 500 men, there was not one sick, nor 
had there been a single instance of drunkenness among the 
Indians or soldiery from the day we left Detroit, though 



George Rogers Clark 59 

rum was delivered out on every occasion when the fatigue 
or bad weather made it necessary. 

24. Clark Moves on Vinceiiiies 

(From the Gcorac Rogers Clark Paper.^, pp. 100. 139-141.) 

Upon the capture of Vincennes l)y Hamilton it became necessary 
for Clark to get active. By Hamilton 's advance he was cut off from 
friends and supplies. He could either abandon his conquests and 
sneak home through the forests, or remain at Kaskaskia and per- 
haps be captured by Hamilton in the spring, or he could undertake 
a winter campaign against Vincennes and leave the result to the 
fortunes of war. He chose the warrior 's part, as the following selec- 
tions from bis letters to Jobn Rogers and George Mason show. 

Kaskaskia, Feby. 3d, 1779. 

You are to take charge of the row-galley called the 
Willing now lying in the Kaskaskias [river], with all her 
furniture and crew> and immediately drop down into the 
Ohio river, and make what way you possibly can up said 
river and Wabash, and take your station ten leagues below 
the post St. Vincent and wait further orders from me 
or some of yonr superior officers. I would request it of 
you to be continually on your guard. Much depends on 
yonr safety. Suffer no vessel to pass you except friends. 
I would recommend to you to keep spies on the banks of 
the rivers as you go up them, for fear of surprise. It is 
conjectured by many that Lieut. Governor Hamilton will 
attempt to make his escape down the Mississippi. If 
you should meet him, never quit him as long as you have 
the least chance to take him. You must be sensible of the 
importance of the charge you have. Act prudently and 
with spirit. Eun no risks in going up in order to speak 
to parties of Indians that you may see on the Ohio. If I 
should have success in the premeditated attack on St. Vin- 
cent you may expect a reenforcement immediately. 

I heartily wish you (MS. torn) 

G. R. Clark. 
To Lieut. John Rogers, Esq. 



6o Readings in Indiana History 

(Clark's Narrative) 

I had a large boat prepared and rigged mounting two 
four-ponnders, six (illegible) large swivels manned with a 
fine company commanded by Lieutenant Rogers. She set 
out in the evening of the 4th of January with orders to 
force her way if possible within ten leagues of St. Vincent 
and lay until further orders. This vessel when complete 
was much admired by the inhabitants as no such thing had 
been seen in the country before. I had great expectations 
from her. . . . 

We were conducted out of town by the inhabitants, 
and Mr. Jeboth (Gibault) the priest, who after a very 
suitable discourse to the purpose, gave us all absolution 
and we set out on a forlorn hope indeed; for our whole 
party with the boat crews consisted of only a little upwards 
of two hundred. I can not accoimt for it but I still had 
inward assurance of success ; and never could when weigh- 
ing every circumstance doubt it, [unless] I had some 
secret check. We had now a route before us of two hun- 
dred and forty miles in length, through, I suppose, one of 
the most beautiful countries in the world; but at this time 
in many parts flowing with water and (making) exceed- 
ingly bad marching. My greatest care was to divert the 
men as much as possible in order to keep up their spirits. 
The first obstruction of any consequence tliat I met with 
was on the 13th. Arriving at the two little Wabashes, 
although three miles asunder they now made but one, the 
flowing water between them being at least three feet deep, 
and in many places four. Being near five miles to the oppo- 
site hills, the shallowest place, except about one hundred 
yards, was three feet. This would have been enough to have 
stopped any set of men that were not in the same temper 
that we were. But in three days we contrived to cross, by 
building a large canoe, ferried across the two channels, the 
rest of the way we waded, building scaffolds at each stop to 
lodge our baggage on until the horses crossed to take them. 
It rained nearly a third of our march, but we never halted 
for it. In the evening of the 17tli we got to the lowlands 
of the River Umbara [Embarrass] which we found deep in 



George Rogers Clark 6i 

water, it being nine miles to St. Vincent which stood on the 
east side of the Wabash and every foot of the way covered 
with deep water. We marched down the little river in 
order to gain the banks of the main stream, which we did in 
about three leagues, made a small canoe and sent an express 
to meet the boat and hurry it up. From the spot we now lay 
on it was about ten miles to town, and every foot of the way 
put together that was not three feet and upwards under 
water would not have made the length of two miles and a 
half and we had not a mouthful of provisions. 

To have waited for our boat, if possible to avoid it, 
would have been impolitic. If I was sensible that you 
would let no person see this relation I would give you a 
detail of our suffering for four days in crossing those 
waters, and the manner it was done ; as I am sure that you 
would credit it. But it is too incredible for any person 
to believe except those that are well acquainted with me 
as you are or have experienced something similar to it. I 
hope you will excuse me until I have the pleasure of seeing 
you personally. But to our inexpressible joy in the even- 
ing of the 23d we got safe on terra firma within half a 
league of the fort, covered by a small grove of trees and 
had a full view of the wished for spot. 

24a. Clark Retakes Fort Vincennes 

(From the George Rogers Clark Papers, pp. 141-145.) 

I detached Lieutenant Bailey and party to attack the 
fort at a certain signal, and took possession of the strongest 
posts of the town with the main body. The garrison had 
so little suspicion of what was happening that they did not 
believe the firing was from an enemy, until a man was 
wounded through the ports (which happened the third or 
fourth shot), thinking it to be some drunken Indians. The 
firing commenced on both sides very warm ; a second divi- 
sion joined the first. A considerable number of British In- 
dians made their escape out of town. The Kickapoos and 
Piankishaws to the number of about one hundred, who 
were in town, immediately armed themselves in our favor 
and marched to attack the fort, I thanked the chief for his 



62 Readings in Indiana History 

intended service, and told him the ill consequence of ouv 
people being mingled in the dark; that they might lay in 
the quarters until light. He approved of it and sent oft* 
his troops. He appeared to be much elevated himself and 
staid with me giving all the information he could. (I knew 
him to be a friend.) The artillery from the fort played 
briskly but did no execution. The garrison was entirely 
surrounded wdthin eighty and a hundred yards behind 
houses, palings, and ditches, etc., etc. Never was a heavier 
firing kept up on both sides for eighteen hours with so 
little damage done. In a few hours I found my prize sure, 
certain of taking every man that I could have wished for, 
being the whole of those that incited the Indians to war; 
all my past sufferings vanished; never was a man more 
happy. 

A flag [of truce] appeared from the fort with a proposi- 
tion from Mr. Hamilton for three days' cessation. He de- 
sired a conference with me immediately, saying that if I 
should make any difficulty of coming into the fort, he would 
meet me at the gate. I at first had no notion of listening 
to anything he had to say as I could only consider himself 
and officers as murderers, and intended to treat tliem as 
such. But after some deliberation I sent Mr. Hamilton my 
compliments and begged leave to inform him that I should 
agree to no other terms than his surrendering himself and 
garrison as prisoners at discretion, but if he was desirous 
of a conference with me I would meet him at the church. 
We accordingly met : he offered to surrender ; but we could 
not agree upon terms. 

He received such treatment on this conference as a man 
of his known barbarity deserved. I would not come upon 
terms with him, recommended to him to defend himself 
with spirit and bravery, that it was the only thing that 
would induce me to treat him and his garrison with lenity 
in case I stormed it, and that this he might expect. He asked 
me what more I could require than the offers he had already 
made. I told him (which was really the truth) that I 
wanted a sufficient excuse to put all the Indians and par- 



George Rogers Clark 63 

tisans to death, as the greater part of those viUains was 
then with him. All his propositions were then refused ; he 
asked me if nothing would do but fighting. I knew of noth- 
ing else; he then begged me to stay until he should return 
to the garrison and consult his officers. Being indifferent 
about him and wanting a few moments for my troops to 
refresh themselves, I told him that the firing should not com- 
mence until such an hour, that during that time he was at 
liberty to pass with safety. 

Mr. Hamilton and myself again met ; he produced cer- 
tain articles which were refused; but toward the close of 
the evening I sent him the following articles : 

1st. Lieutenant Governor Hamilton engages to deliver 
up to Colonel Clark Fort Sackville as it is at present with all 
stores. 

2d. The garrison are to deliver themselves up prison- 
ers of war and march out with their arms and accoutre 
ments. 

3d. The garrison to be delivered u}) tomorrow at ten 
o 'clock. 

4t]i. Three days' time to be allowed the garrison to 
settle their accounts with the traders and inhabitants of this 
place. 

5th. The officers of the garrison to be allowed tlieir 
necessary baggage. 



CHAPTER IV 
INDIAN BORDER WARS 

From 1783 to 1790 there was a lull in the Indian wars. With 
the Treaty of Paris in 1783 the British withdrew their soldiers from 
among the Indians in the Northwest country. They did not, how- 
ever, stop meddling; with Indian affairs. They refused to give up 
Forts Sandusky, Detroit, and Dearborn. From these posts and 
from Maiden, in Ontario, Canada, British fur traders went among 
the Indians. It was to their interest to keep up the hatred of the 
Indians for the Americans so that the Indians would bring their 
furs to the British traders. It was also to the interest of the British 
to keep American settlers out of the Northwest so that the whole 
territory would remain a field for their fur trade. They persuaded 
the Indians to demand the Ohio river as a permanent Indian bound- 
ary. When the Americans tried to get the Indians to meet in coun- 
cil the British kept the Indians away. 

When Arthur St. Clair came to Marietta, the capital of the 
Northwest territory, in 1788, as governor, he was unable to get the 
Indians to meet him in council. They did very little trading with 
the Americans, carrying practically all their furs to the British at 
Detroit. Marauding parties waylaid immigrants coming down the 
Ohio and killed or robbed scores of them. The following selections 
picture the conditions on the frontier about 1790. 

25. Major Hamtramck at Vincennes 

(From the St. Clair Papers, II, pp. 26-28, 33-34.) 
General Harmar was in command of the regular army in the 
West. Major John M. Hamtramck was stationed at Vincennes with 
a small force. In 1788 he built Fort Knox three miles above the vil- 
lage. This remained a station of the regular army till after the 
War of 1812. The following selection consists of portions of two 
letters from General Harmar to Henry Knox, Secretary of War. 

Post Vincennes, August 7th, 1787. 

Sir : — I had the honor of addressing you last on the 7th 
ult. from camp on the Kentucky shore, just below the rapids 
of the Ohio. 

On the 6th ultimo Captain Zeigier, with a party and an 
adequate number of boats, was detached from thence with 

(64) 



Indian Border Wars 65 

the provisions. On the 8tli we embarked witli the remainder 
of the fleet and arrived on the morning of the 10th at the 
rocks, or the landing and crossing place, called also the Del- 
aware Old Town,^^ about eight miles above Green River, and 
one hundred and eighty miles below the rapids. In the after- 
noon of the same day I detached Major Hamtramck with a 
party of one hundred men to conduct the whole fleet from 
the landing to the mouth of the Wabash, and then to ascend 
the river for Post Vincennes. On the morning of the 11th, 
with the residue of the troops, I took up the enclosed order 
of march, with our cattle in the center, in very warm 
weather. The men being obliged to carry fifteen days' 
flour upon their backs, rendered it very fatiguing. A due 
north course from the landing and carrying place would 
have struck the post in fifty miles distance from the Ohio, 
but we were obliged to oblique for the sake of water. On 
the 16th we forded the White river (a considerable stream) 
about fifteen miles below the forks, and arrived at Post Vin- 
cennes on the 17th at noon, the whole march computed to be 
about seventy miles. From the Ohio, where we set out for 
the White river, we had a very difficult march, the country 
being full of thickets and scarce of water, but afterwards 
we marched through fine open woods and large prairies, or 
natural meadows, and encamped on the banks of the Wa- 
bash. 

On the 18tli we were visited by Colonel Le Gras, the 
magistrates and the principal French inhabitants welcom- 
ing us upon our arrival. Their behavior was most respect- 
fully submissive. In the afternoon of the same day, finding 
the Wabash River so low and difficult to ascend, I detached 
a sergeant and twenty men, in three barges and five pet- 
tiaugers,^" to meet Major Hamtramck and lighten the fleet. 
Post Vincennes is a very considerable village, situated upon 
the Wabash, about one hundred and twenty miles from the 
mouth. It contains nearly four hundi-ed houses — log and 
bark — outhouses, barns, etc.; the number of inhabitants, 
about nine hundred souls French, and about four hundred 

"Delaware Old Town, an Indian town some 15 miles above where Evansvillo 
now stands. The "rapids" an- t)ie Falls of the Ohio at I,oiiisville. 

'" Pettiaugcr, a canoe made from a log hollowed out ; also called pirogue. 
5—1643 



66 Readings in Indiana History 

souls Americans. Monsieur Vincennes, the French officer 
from whom it derives its name, I am informed, was here and 
commenced the settlement sixty years ago. 

Major Hamtramck did not arrive with the boats until 
the 25th, having been eleven days on very severe, fatiguing 
duty, ascending the Wabash. He was obliged to leave En- 
sign Ryker Suydam, with a party, with the clothing, all the 
whiskey and the chief part of the flour, at the mouth of the 
Wabash, the water being so shoal that the boats could not 
ascend the river. On the 26tli, I detached Lieutenant Arm- 
strong, with a party of forty-five fresh men, in several jjet- 
tiaugers, to join Ensign Suydam and assist in bringing uj) 
the provisions and our new clothing, which was left behind 
at the mouth of the river. 

On the 28tli, eight Piankisliaw Indians arrived from 
Terre Haute, up the Wabash, in consequence of Colonel Le 
*Gras's information to them of the troops coming to the post. 
On the 29th I had a conference with them, and presented 
them with thirteen strings of wampum, and assured them 
of the friendly disposition of the United States, and advised 
them not to listen to what any bad people might say to the 
contrary. I sent a message by these Indians to all the chiefs 
of the different tribes on the Wabash, inviting them to as- 
semble here and hear what I had to say to them. These 
Indians were well pleased; they presented me with a calu- 
met.-'^ I gave them some small presents and they set off 
on the 31st to deliver my message to the different chiefs. 
The French inhabitants, at the same time, sent a speech to 
them, a copy of which I have the honor to enclose. 

On the 15th inst.. Lieutenant Armstrong and Ensign Suy- 
dam arrived with the stores, clothing, etc., from the banks 
of the Wabash, after a very fatiguing and dangerous pas- 
sage. Several parties of Indians were hovering about the 
Wabash ; they waylaid a canoe on the 25tli ultimo, which had 
fallen in the rear, at what is called the Long Rapid, on board 
of which were some flour and whisky, private property, be- 
longing to our guide; they killed one of Captain Zeigler's 
company and a Frenchman, and took prisoner one of the 

'" Calumet, an Indian peace-pipe. 



Indian Border Wars 67 

men whom I had enlisted for one year. I informed the In- 
dians of this circumstance, and told their chiefs that if they 
did not desist they would certainly draw down upon them 
the vengeance of the United States. They disavowed in 
strong terms any knowledge of this murder. 

On the 5tli (of September) the Piankishaw and Woa 
Indians arrived at the post from above on the Wabash to 
the number of about one hundred and twenty. Every pre- 
caution was taken. We had a fortified camp, two redoubts 
were thrown up on our right and left, and the guard in front 
intrenched. The troops were all new clothed and made a 
truly military appearance. The Indians saluted us by fir- 
ing several volleys on the Wabash, opposite our camp. Their 
salute was returned by a party of our men firing several 
platoons.-^ I was determined to impress upon them as much 
as possible the majesty of the United States, and at the 
same time that it was the wish of Congress to live in peace 
and friendship with them; likewise to let them know that 
if they persisted in being hostile a body of troops would 
march to their tow^ns and sweep them off the face of the 
earth. 

On the 7th I invited them to camp, and made the enclosed 
speech to them. The Indians admired the troops. I be- 
lieve they had never seen such a sight before. On the 8th 
they answered my speech, and, in strong figurative lan- 
guage, expressed their determination to preserve perfect 
peace and friendship with the United States as long as the 
waters flowed. They utterly disavowed any knowledge 
of the murder that had been committed, and assured me that 
inquiry should be made for the prisoner. They presented 
me with a number of calumets and wampum,-- which I now 
have the honor of transmitting, enclosed in a rich otter skin. 

On the 9tli the young warriors were drinking wliisky 
and dancing before our tents all the morning to demonstrate 
their joy. On the 10th I made them several presents from 
the commissioner's goods, to no great amount. On the 
12th the chief part of them left the post for tlieir different 

-■' Firing a platoon, i. c, half a company lirins;- sinmllancoiisly. 

--' Wampum', a bolt maclo of stiiu;4s of heads, used hy tho Indians as money. 



68 Readings in Indiana History 

villages up the Wabash. They returned highly satisfied 
with the treatment they had received. Indeed, it was a 
proper tour of fatigue for me. I found it politic to pay the 
greatest attention to them. They are amazingly fond of 
whiskey, and destroyed-^ a considerable quantity of it. I 
trust that you may find this conference with the Indians at- 
tended with very little expense; I question whether the 
whole, whisky, provisions, and presents, will cost the public 
more than one hundred and fifty dollars. Their interpreter 
is a half-Frenchman, and married to a Wea squaw. He has 
very great influence among them. I judged it necessary to 
pay extraordinary attention to him. 

After finishing the conference with the Indians, and ob- 
taining the enclosed petitions of the inhabitants of Post Vin- 
cennes to Congress, relinquishing their charter, and trusting 
the generosity of that honorable body, I judged it expedient 
to leave a garrison at the post, as it would have been im- 
politic, after the parade we had made, to entirely abandon 
the country. Accordingly, Major Hamtramck commands 
there. His command consists of Captain Smith's company, 
fifty-five, and part of Ferguson's company, forty; total, 
ninety-five. I have ordered him to fortify himself, and to 
regulate the militia, who are to join him in case of hos- 
tilities. 

26. Gainelin's Mission to the 3[ianiis 

(From the St. Clair Papers, II, pp. 135, 155-159; accounts by Major Ham- 
tramck and Antoine Gamelin [1790].) 

The Indians became more hostUe during the years 1788 and 
1789. Early in 1790 Governor St. Clair left Ohio on his way to 
Kaskaskia and Vincennes. At Fort Steuben (Jeffersonville), Jan- 
uary 23, 1790, he wrote a message for Colonel Hamtramck at Fort 
Knox (Vincennes), asking him to "send a flag" (agent under a flag 
of truce) among the Wabash Indians to try to learn the cause of 
their discontent. The first messenger sent by Hamtramck got as 
far as the Vermilion towns. The threatening appearance of the 
warriors made him fearful for his life and he retamed. Antoine 
Gamelin, a French trader of Vincennes who was personally ac- 
quainted with nearly all the Wabash Indians, then took the Govern- 

23 "Destroyed," i. e., drank, consumed. 



Indian Border Wars 69 

or's message, and, on April 5, set out for the Indian towns. The 
first selection following is taken from a letter of Major Hamtramck 
to Governor St. Claii. The second is a portion of Gamelin's 
Journal. 

(Major Hamtramck to Governor St. Clair) 

This day a boat arrived from the Falls, which brings an 
account of Major Doughty 's being defeated, and himself 
killed, on the Cherokee River. The Indians of the Miami 
continue their depredations on the Ohio. About four weeks 
ago they took two boats near the mouth of the Scioto, and, 
shortly after, they perceived three others coming down to- 
gether, and, after a chase of fifteen miles in one of the boats 
they had taken before, they obliged the people to abandon 
two of the three boats to save their lives. In one of them 
were twenty-six horses and merchandise supposed to be 
worth twelve or fifteen hundred pounds — the property of 
Hart & Rochester, of Hagerstown-^ — besides several pair 
of saddle-bags, some of which contained cash and various 
articles not easily ascertained. The 12th of last month, 
about fifteen miles below the rapids, they took another boat 
loaded with salt, coming up from Bullett's Lick, and killed 
the people. On the 13tli they killed a man at Mr. Lana- 
caghe's (Lan'-a-cag) Station, which is about two and one- 
half miles above the garrison, at the Falls. All of these 
affairs, I am afrtiid, obstruct the pacific desires of the 
United States toward the Indians. 

( Gamelin 's Journal ) 

I, Antoine Gamelin, by order of Major Hamtramck, set 
off from Fort Knox on the 5th of April to proceed to Ml- 
amitown-^ with the speeches of his excellency, Arthur St. 
Clair, and to receive the answer of the Wabash and Miami 
nations. . . . 

The 11th of April I reached a tribe of Kickapoos; the 
head chief and all the warriors being assembled, I gave 
them two branches of white wampum, with the speeches of 
his excellency, Arthur St. Clair, and those of Major Ham- 

-■' Hagerstown, in Marylanrl. 

" Miamitown, near what is now Fort Wayne. See selection 12. 



yo Readings in Indiana History 

tramck (it must be observed that tlie speeches have been in 
another hand before me). The messenger could not pro- 
ceed further than the Vermilion on account of some private 
wrangling between the interpreter and some chief men of 
the tribe. Moreover, something in the speech displeased 
them very much, especially that portion wdiicli is included in 
the third article, wliich says : ''I do now make you the offer 
of peace ; accept it or reject it as you please. ' ' These words 
appeared to displease all the tribes to whom the first mes- 
senger was sent. They told me the words were menacing, 
and finding that they might have a bad effect, I took it upon 
myself to exclude them. 

After making some apology, they answered that they 
and their tribe were pleased with my speech, and that I 
could go on without danger; but that they could not pres- 
ently give me an answer, having some warriors absent ; and 
without consulting the Ouiatanons, they being the owners of 
their lands. They desired me to stop at Quitepiconnae^" 
(Qur-te-pe-con'-ne), that they would have the chiefs and 
warriors of Ouiatanon, and those of their nation, assembled 
there, and would receive a proper answer. They said that 
they expected by me a draught of milk from the great chief 
and the commanding officer of the post, to put the old peo- 
ple in good humor; also, some powder and balls for the 
young men for hunting, and to get some good broth for their 
women and children; that I should know a bearer of 
speeches should never be with empty hands. They prom- 
ised me to keep their young men from stealing, and to send 
speeches to their nations in the prairies to do the same. 

The 14tli of April the Ouiatanons and the Kickapoos 
were assembled. After my speech one of the head chiefs 
got up and told me : 

''You, Gamelin, my friend, and son-in-law, we are 
pleased to see you in our village, and to hear by your mouth 
the good words of tlie great chief. We thought to receive 
a few words from the French people, but I see the contrary ; 
none but the Big-knife is sending speeches to us. You know 

'-'■ Quitepioonnae. a Kickapoo town on tin' prairie rcn <ir twelve miles iiorrii- 
west of Ouiatanon. 



Indian Border Wars 71 

that we can terminate nothing without the consent of our 
elder brethren, the Miamis. I invite you to proceed to their 
village, and to speak to them. There is one thing in your 
speech I do not like. I will not tell of it. Even were I 
drunk, I would perceive it. But our elder brethren will cer- 
tainly take notice of it in your speech. You invite us to 
stop our young men. It is impossible to do it, they being 
constantly encouraged by the British." 

Another chief got up and said: "The Americans are 
very flattering in their speeches. Many times our nation 
went to their rendezvous. I was once there myself. Some 
of our chiefs died on the route, and we always came back 
naked, and you, Gamelin, you came with a speech, Avith 
empty hands. ' ' 

Another chief got up and said to his young men : "If 
we are so poor, and dressed in deer skins, it is our own 
fault; our French traders are leaving us and our villages 
because you plunder them every day, and it is time for us 
to have another conduct. "^'^ 

Another chief got up and said: "Know ye that the vil- 
lage of Ouiatanon is the sepulcher of all our ancestors. The 
chief of America-^ invites us to go to him, if we are for 
peace. He has not his leg broke,^'* having been able to go 
as far as the Illinois. He might come hero himself, and we 
should be glad to see him at our village. We confess that 
we accepted the axe, but it is by the reproach we contin- 
ually receive from the English and other nations, which re- 
ceived the axe first, calling us women. At the present time 
they invite our young men to war. i^s to the old people, 
they are wishing for peace." 

They could not give me an answer before they received 
advice from Miamis, their elder brethren. 

The 23d of Ajjril I arrived at the Miamitown. Tlie next 
day I got the Miami nation, the Chaouanons,^"* and the Dela- 
wares, all assembled. I gave to each nation two branches 
of wampum, and began the speeches, the French and Eng- 

-' lime to havo anotliov conduct, i. c, time to have a change. 
^' i. e., Governor St. Clair. 
''■^ i. e., he is able to walk. 
3" Chaouanons, the Shawnees. 



72 Readings in Indiana History 

lisli traders being present, they having been invited by the 
chiefs, and I having told them myself I would be glad to 
have them present, having nothing to say against anybody. 
After the speech T showed them the treaty concluded at 
Muskiiignm between his excellency, Governor St. Clair, and 
sundry nations.^^ This displeased them. T told them that 
the purpose of this present time was not to submit to them 
any condition, but to offer them the peace, which made their 
displeasure disappear. The great chief told me that he was 
pleased with the speech; that he would soon give me an 
answer. 

In a private discourse with the great chief he told me 
not to mind what the Chaouanons would tell me, since they 
had a bad heart, and were the perturbators [disturbers] of 
all the nations. He said the Miamis had a bad name on ac- 
count of mischief done on the Eiver Ohio, but he told me 
it was not occasioned by his young men, but by the Chaou- 
anons, his young men going out only for the hunt. 

The 25th of April Blue Jacket, chief warrior of the 
Chaouanons, invited me to go to his home, and told me : 

"My friend, by the name and consent of the Chaoua- 
nons and Delawares, I will speak to you. We are all sen- 
sible of your speech, and pleased with it, but, after consul- 
tation, we can not give an answer without hearing from 
our father,^^ at Detroit, and we are determined to give you 
back the two brandies of wampum, and to send you to De- 
troit to see and hear the chief, or to stay here twenty nights 
to receive his answer. From all quarters, we receive 
speeches from the Americans, and not one is alike. We 
suppose that they intend to deceive us — therefore take back 
your branches of wampum. ' ' 

The 29tli of April I got them all assembled. I told them 
that I was not to go to Detroit ; that the speeches were di- 
rected to the nations of the River Wabash and the Miami, 
and that, to prove the sincerity of the speech and the heart 
of Governor St. Clair, I had willingly given a copy of the 
speeches to be shown to the commandant at Detroit, and, ac- 

'1 A so-called treaty, which failed because the Indians, excepting a few timid 
tribes, had remained away. 

^- i. e., the British Commandei' at Detroit. 



Indian Border Wars 73 

cording to a letter written by the commandant at Detroit to 
the Miamis, Chaouanons, and Delawares, mentioning to you 
to be peaceable with the Americans. I would go to him very 
willingly, if it was my directions, being sensible of his senti- 
ments. I told them I had nothing to say to the command- 
ant, neither him to me. ''You must immediately resolve, 
if you intend to take me to Detroit, or else I am to go back 
as soon as possible." 

Blue Jacket got up and said to me : "My friend, we are 
well pleased with what you say ; our intention is not to force 
you to Detroit ; it is only a proposal, thinking it for the best. 
Our answer is the same as the Miamis. We will send, in 
thirty nights, a full and positive answer by a young man of 
each nation, by writing, to Post Vincennes. ' ' 

In the evening Blue Jacket, chief of the Chaouanons, 
having taken me to supper with him, told me, in a private 
manner, that the nation of Chaouanons was in doubt of the 
sincerity of the Big-knives, so called, having been already 
deceived by them. That the Big-knives'''''' had first destroyed 
their lands, put out their fires, and sent away their young 
men without a mouthful of meat ; also, they had taken away 
their women ; wherefore, many of them would, with a great 
deal of i^ain, forget these affronts. Moreover, that some 
other nations were apprehending that offers of peace would 
perhaps tend, by degrees, to take away their lands, and 
would serve them as they did before. A certain proof that 
they intend to enroach on our lands is their new settlement 
on the Ohio. If they don't keep this side clear, it will never 
be a proper reconcilement with the nations of Chaouanons, 
Iroquois, Wyandots, and perhaps many others. 

Le Gris, chief of the Miamis, asked me, in a private dis- 
course, what chiefs had made a treaty with the Americans 
at Muskingum. I answered liim that their names were men- 
tioned in the treaty. He told me that he had heard of it 
some time ago, but they are not chiefs, neither delegates, 
who made that treat}''. They are only young men, who, 
without authority and instruction from their chiefs, have 

'^ Bii?-Kni7es, the term given by the Inclians originally to the Kentucky settlors, 
later applied to those who crossed the Ohio River and settled in Indiana. 



74 Readings in Indiana History 

concluded tliat treaty, wliicli will not be approved. Tliey 
went to that treaty clandestinely, and tliey intend to make 
mention of it in tlie next council to be lield. 

27. General Scott Destroys Ouiatanon 

(Fivmi Ainrrican i<tate Papers, Indian Affairs, I, pp. lRl-182; acoount by 
Brig.-Gen. Charles Scott [1701].) 

As soon as Antoine Gamelin returned from his mission to the 
Wabash tribes Colonel Hamtramck advised Clovernor St. Clair to 
prepare for war. General eTosiah Harmar led his troop against the 
INliami towns on the Manmee but was defeated where Fort Wayne 
now stands, in November, 1790. The next spring murders and 
massacres on tlie liorder became still more common. The regular 
army was not in condition for an attack at once. It was therefore 
decided to send a flying squadron against the upper Wabash towns 
in order to conceal the preparation of the regulars and at the same 
time keep the warriors away from the settlements. For this pur- 
pose General Charles Scott was ordered to call out the Kentucky 
militia. The official report of this exp(^dition as written by General 
Scott to the Secretary of War follows. 

I have the honor to inform yon that the detachment of 
mounted volunteers under my command, authorized to be 
raised by your letter of the 29tli of March last, arrived at 
the mouth of the Kentucky (river) on the morning of the 
19th of May, from which time to the 28d I was employed in 
transporting' the troops across the Ohio River, in liaving 
them mustered, and in issuing to them provisions and am- 
munition. The delay at the Ohio was greater than I wished, 
yet, I trust, justifiable, as it was, in part, occasioned by the 
request of General St. Clair. 

In prosecution of the enterprise I marched four miles 
from the banks of the Ohio on the 23d; and on the 24tli I 
resumed my march, and pushed forward with the utmost 
industry, directing my route to Ouiatanon (now Lafayette) 
in the best manner my guides and information enabled me, 
though I found myself greatly deficient in both. 

By the 31st I had marched one hundred and thirty-five 
miles, over a country cut by four large branches of White 
River, and many smaller streams, with steep muddy banks. 
During this march I traversed a country alternately inter- 



Indian Border Wars 



75 



spersed with the most hixuriant soil and deep clayey bogs, 
from one to five miles in width, rendered almost impervious 
bv brush and briers. 

Rain fell in torrents every day, with frequent blasts of 
w^ind, and thunder storms. These obstacles impeded my 
progress, wore down my horses and destroyed my provi- 
sions. 




"I perceived an Indian on horseback a few miles to the right." 
Taken by special permission from Moores' The Northwest Under Three Flags. 

On the morning of the 1st (June) instant, as the army 
entered an extensive prairie, I perceived an Indian on horse- 
back a few miles to the right ; I immediately made a detach- 
ment to intercept him, but he escaped; finding myself dis- 
covered, I determined to advance with all the rapidity my 
circumstances would permit, rather with the hope than 
the expectation of reaching the object that day; for my 
guides were strangers to the country which I occupied. At 
one o'clock, having marched, by computation, one hundred 
and fifty-five miles from the Ohio, as I penetrated a grove 
which bordered on an extensive prairie, I discovered two 
small villages to my left, at two and four miles distance. 



76 Readings in Indiana History 

My guides now recognized the ground and informed nie 
that the main town was four or five miles in my front, be- 
hind a point of woods, which jutted into the prairie. I im- 
mediately detached Col. John Hardin, with sixty mounted 
infantry, and a troop of light horse under Captain McCoy, 
to attack the villages to the left, and moved on briskly with 
my main body in order of battle towards the town, the 
smoke from which was discernible. My guides were de- 
ceived with respect to the situation of the town ; for, instead 
of standing at the edge of the plain, through which I 
marched, I found it in the low ground, bordering on the Wa- 
bash. On turning the point of woods one house presented 
(itself) in my front. Captain Price was ordered to assault 
that with 40 men. He executed the command with great 
gallantry and killed two warriors. 

When I gained the summit of the eminence which over- 
looks the village on the banks of the Wabash, I discovered 
the enemy in great confusion, endeavoring to make their 
escape over the river in canoes. I instantly ordered Colonel 
Wilkinson to rush forward with the first battalion. The 
order was executed with promptitude, and this detachment 
gained the bank of the river just as the rear of the enemy 
had embarked, and, regardless of a brisk fire kept up from 
a Kickapoo town on the opposite bank, in a few minutes, by 
a well-directed fire from their ritles, they destroyed all the 
savages with which five canoes were crowded. 

To my great mortification, the Wabash was many feet 
beyond fording at this place. I therefore detached Colonel 
Wilkinson to a ford two miles above, which my guides in- 
formed me was more practicable ; but he was unable to 
cross. 

The enemy still kept possession of the Kickapoo town. 
I determined to dislodge them, and for that purpose or- 
dered Captains King's and Logsdon's companies to march 
down the river below the town and cross, under the conduct 
of Major Barbee. Several of the men swam the river, and 
others crossed in a small canoe. This movement was unob- 
served, and my men had taken post on the bank before they 
were discovered by the enemy, who immediately abandoned 



Indian Border Wars 77 



the village. About this time word was brought me that 
Colonel Hardin was incumbered with prisoners, and had 
discovered a stronger village further to the left than those 
I had observed, which he was proceeding to attack. I im- 
mediately detached Captain Brown with his comi)any to 
support the Colonel ; but the distance being six miles, before 
the Captain arrived the business was done, and Colonel 
Hardin joined me a little before sunset, having killed six 
warriors and taken fifty-two prisoners. Captain Bull, the 
warrior who discovered me in the morning, had gained the 
main town and gave the alarm a short time before me. But 
the villages to the left were uninformed as to my approach, 
and had no retreat. 

The next morning I determined to detach Colonel 
Wilkinson with five hundred men to destroy the important 
town of Keth'tipecanimk, at the mouth of Eel River, 
eighteen miles from my camp, and on the west side of the 
Wabash. But on examination I discovered my men and 
horses to be crippled and worn down by a long, laborious 
march and the active exertions of the preceding day; that 
only three hundred and sixty men could be found in capacity 
to undertake the enterprise, and they prepared to march on 
foot. 

Colonel Wilkinson marched with this detachment at half 
after five in the evening, and returned to my camp the next 
day at one o'clock, having marched thirty-six miles in twelve 
hours, and destroyed the most important settlement of the 
enemy in that quarter of the federal territory. 

Many of the inhabitants of this village (Ouiatanon) 
were French, and lived in a state of civilization. By the 
books, letters, and other documents found there it is evident 
that this place was in close connection with and dependent 
on Detroit. A large quantity of corn, a variety of house- 
hold goods, peltry, and other articles were burned with this 
village, which consisted of about seventy houses, many of 
them well finished. 

Misunderstanding the object of a white flag, which ap- 
peared on an eminence opposite to me, in the afternoon of 
the first, I liberated an aged squaw and sent with her a mes- 



78 Readings in Indiana History- 

sage to the savages that if they woukl come in and surren- 
der, their towns shoukl be spared, and they should receive 
good treatment. It was afterward found that this white 
flag was not intended as a signal of parley, but was placed 
there to mark the spot wdiere a person of distinction among 
the Indians, who had died some time before, was buried. 

On the 4tli I determined to discharge sixteen of the 
weakest and most infirm of my prisoners with a talk to the 
Wabash tribes. My motives in this measure were, to rid 
the army of a heavy incumbrance, to gratify the impulsions 
of humanity, to increase the panic my operations had pro- 
duced, and, by distracting the councils of tlie enemy, to 
favor the views of government; and I flatter myself these 
objects will justify my conduct and secure the approbation 
of my country. 

On the same day, after having burned the towns and ad- 
jacent villages, and destroyed the growing corn and pulse, 
I began my march for the Rapids of the Ohio. I arrived 
on the 14th inst. without the loss of a single man by the 
enemy, and only five wounded, having killed thirty-two, 
chiefly warriors of size and figure, and taken fifty-eight 
prisoners. 

It is with much pride and pleasure I mention that no act 
of inhumanity has marked the conduct of the volunteers of 
Kentucky on this occasion. Even the inveterate habit of 
scalping the dead ceased to influence. 

I have delivered forty-one prisoners to Captain Asheton, 
of the 1st United States Regiment, at Fort Steuben ( Jeffer- 
sonville), for whom I have his receipt. 

I sincerely lament that the weather and the consequences 
it produced rendered it impossible for me to carry terror 
and desolation to the head of the Wabash. The corps I 
had the honor to command was equal to the object, but the 
condition of my horses and state of my provisions were in- 
superable obstacles to my own intentions and the wishes 

of all. 

I have the honor to be, with great respect, your most 
obedient servant, Charles Scott, B. Gr. 

To the Honorable Henry Knox, Secretary of War. 



Indian Border Wars 79 

28. (ieneral Wilkinson's Reconnoitei-ing; Party 

(From Ainvrican tStutc l^uporft, Indian Affairs, I, pp. 13H-;jr).) 

The expedition of General Scott was so successful that governor 
St. Clair and the field officers decided to send another at once. To 
lead this they chose Colonel James Wilkinson, who had been second 
in command under Scott. He crossed the Ohio at Cincinnati and 
headed directly for the Miami to^vns on the IMaumee. But when 
about fifty miles south of the present site of Fort Wayne, he honi 
his course sharply to the west toward the Miami towns on Eel river. 
Tlie following is his official report : 

Feankfoet on Kentucky^ August 24, 1791. 

I struck the Wabash about one and a half leagues above 
the mouth of Eel river, being the very spot for which I had 
aimed from the commencement of my march. I crossed the 
river and following the path, a north by east course, at the 
distance of two and a half miles my reconnoitering party 
announced Eel river in front, and the Indian town [L'An- 
guille, the town of Chief Little Turtle] on the opposite bank. 
I dismounted, ran forward and examined the situation of 
the town as far as was practicable without exposing myself ; 
but the whole face of the country, from the Wabash to the 
margin of Eel river, being a continuous thicket of brambles, 
blackjacks, weeds and shrubs of different kinds, it was im- 
possible for me to get a satisfactory view without endanger- 
ing a discovery. I immediately determined to post two 
companies on the banlv of the river, opposite the town, and 
above the ground I then occupied; to make a detour with 
Major Caldwell and the second battalion until I fell into the 
Miami trace ; and by that route to cross the river above and 
gain the rear of the town; and to leave directions with 
Major McDowell, who commanded the first battalion, to lie 
perdue [concealed] until I commenced the attack, then to 
dash through the river with his corps and the advanced 
guard and assault the houses in front, and upon the left. 

In the moment I was about to put this arrangement into 
execution word was brought me that the enemy had taken 
the alarm and were flying. I instantly ordered a general 
charge, which was obeyed with alacrity. The men forcing 



8o Readings in Indiana History 

their way over every obstacle, plunged through the river 
with vast intrepidity. The enemy was unable to make the 
smallest resistance. Six warriors, (and in the hurry and 
confusion of the charge) two squaws and a child were killed, 
thirty-four prisoners were taken, and an unfortunate cap- 
tive released, with the loss of two men killed and one 
wounded. 

I found this town scattered along Eel river for full three 
miles on an uneven, scrubby oak barren, intersected alter- 
nately by bogs almost impassable and impervious thickets 
of plum, hazel, and blackjacks; notwithstanding these diffi- 
culties, if I may credit the rejjort of the prisoners, very few 
who were in the town escaped. Expecting a second expedi- 
tion, their goods were generally packed up and buried. 

Sixty warriors had crossed the Wabash to watch the 
paths leading from the Ohio. The head chief, with all the 
prisoners and a number of families, was out digging a root 
which they substitute in the place of the potato. About one 
hour before my arrival all the warriors, except eight, had 
mounted their horses and ridden up the river to a French 
store to purchase ammunition. This ammunition had ar- 
rived from the Miami village that very day, and the squaws 
informed me it was stored about two miles from the town. 

I detached Major Caldwell in quest of it, but he failed 
to make any discovery, although he scoured the country for 
seven or eight miles up the river. I encamped in the town 
that night, and the next morning I cut up the corn, scarcely 
in the milk, burnt the cabins, mounted my young warriors, 
squaws and children in the best manner in my power and 
leaving two infirm squaws and a child, with a short talk, I 
commenced my march for the Kickapoo town in the prairie. 

I felt my prisoners a vast incumbrance, but I was not in 
force to justify a detachment, having barely 523 rank and 
file, and being then in the bosom of the Ouiatanon country, 
one hundred and eighty miles removed from succor, and not 
more than one and a half days ' march from the Pottawatto- 
mies, Shawnees, and Delawares. 

Not being able to discover any path in a direct course to 
the Kickapoo town, I marched by the road leading to Tippe- 



Indian Border Wars 8i 

canoe, in the hope of finding some diverging trace which 
might favor my design. I encamped that evening about six 
miles from Kenapacomaqua (Ken'-a-pa-c5-ma-qua), the 
Indian name of the town I had destroyed, and marched next 
morning at fonr o'clock. My course continued west till 
nine o'clock, when I turned to the northwest, on a small 
hunting path, and, at a short distance, I launched into the 
boundless prairies of the West, with the intention to pursue 
the course until I could strike the road which leads from the 
■Pottawattomies of Lake Michigan immediately to the town 
I sought. With this view I pushed forward, through bog- 
after bog, to the saddle skirts, in mud and water ; and after 
persevering for eight hours I found myself environed on all 
sides with morasses, which forbade my advancing, and, at 
the same time, rendered it difficult for me to extricate my 
little army. 

The way by which we entered was so much beat and 
softened by the horses that it was almost impossible to re- 
turn by that route, and my guides pronounced the morass in 
front impassable. 

A chain of thin groves, extending in the direction of the 
Wabash, at this time presented itself to my left. It was 
necessary that I should gain these groves, and, for this pur- 
pose, I dismounted, went forward, and, leading my horse 
through a bog, to the armpits in mud and water, with great 
difficulty and fatigue I accomplished my object. Changing 
my course to south by west, I regained the Tippecanoe road 
at five o'clock, and encamped on it at seven o'clock, after a 
march of 30 miles, which broke down several of my horses. 
I am the more minute, in detailing the occurrences of this 
day, because they produced the most unfavorable effects. 
I was in motion at 4 o 'clock next morning, and at 8 o 'clock 
my advanced guard made some discoveries, which induced 
me to believe we were near an Indian village. I immedi- 
ately pushed that body forward in a trot, and followed with 
Major Caldwell and the 2d battalion, leaving Major McDow- 
ell to take charge of the prisoners. 

At 12 o'clock I reached Tippecanoe, which had been oc- 
cupied by the enemy, who watched my motions and aban- 

6—1643 



82 Readings in Indiana History 

doned the place that morning. After the destruction of this 
town, in June hist, the enemy had returned, and cultivated 
their corn and pulse, which I found in high perfection, and 
in much greater quantity than at L'Anguille/^^ To refresh 
my horses and give time to cut down the corn I determined 
to halt till the next morning, and then to resume my march 
to the Kickapoo town, on the prairie, by the road which 
leads from Ouiatanon to that place. 

In the course of the day I discovered some murmur- 
ings and discontent amongst the men, which I found, on in- - 
quiry, to proceed from their reluctance to advance farther 
into the enemy's country. This induced me to call for a 
state-'^"' of the horses and provisions, when, to my great mor- 
tification, two hundred and seventy horses were returned 
lame and tired, with barely five days' provisions for the 
men. Under these circumstances, I was compelled to aban- 
don my designs upon the Kickapoos of the prairies, and, 
with a degree of anguish not to be comprehended except by 
those who have experienced similar disappointments, I 
marched forward to a town of the same nation situated 
about three leagues west of Ouiatanon. 

As I advanced to that town the enemy made some show 
of fighting me, but vanished at my approach. I destroyed 
this town consisting of thirty houses, with a considerable 
quantity of corn in the milk, and the same day I moved on 
to Ouiatanon, wdiere I forded the Wabash and proceeded to 
tlie site of the villages on the margin of the prairie, where 
I encamped at 7 o'clock. At this town, and the villages 
destroyed by General Scott, in June, w^e found the corn had 
been replanted, and was now in high cultivation, several 
fields being well ploughed, all of which were destroyed. 

On the 12th I resumed my march, and, falling into Gen- 
eral Scott 's return trace, I arrived without any material in- 
cident, at the rapids of the Ohio on the 21st instant, after a 
march, by accurate computation, of 451 miles from Port 
Washington [Cincinnati]. 

^* L'Anguillo, tho Indian town on Kol Rivor mfntionod aliovo. Tipporanoo is 
thp town Scott calls "Kothtippcnniink." 
^^ Statement of tlio condition of. 



Indian Border Wars 83 

29. Stories of Indian Captivity: The Stephen A.shby Family 

(From IinUaiHi Mufjazinc of History, IX, p. 05; account by Jidge William 

POLKE [1842].) 

The pioneers felt a greater horror toward Indian captivity than 
toward death itself. Nothing would induce a frontiersman to sur- 
render to Indians but the hope that he might escape. The Indians 
had a foolish habit of adoption by which they undertook to make 
an Indian out of the captive white man. After this ceremony of 
adoption was performed the white captive was allowed partial free- 
dom, always watched, however, by his family. Under these circum- 
stances it was not difficult to escape. The Indians either at once 
killed the children they captured or else adopted them and treated 
them as their own. A great many stories of Indian cai)tivity have 
come down to us. The most famous of these is the story of Frances 
Slocum, who was captured in the Wyoming valley in Pejinsyl- 
vania and brought to the Miami village on the IMississinewa, where 
she spent her life, becoming in all respects an Indian. Another 
case was that of William Polke, who together with his mother 
and some other small children, was captured at the Burnt Fort, in 
Kentuclvy, in 1782. The mother and children were taken to the 
neigliborhood of Detroit where they lived with Indians for two 
years. The father, Charles Polke, then heard of them and had no 
troulile in securing their release. In most instances children who 
remained three or more years with the Indians never forgot it. 

Stephen Asliby, a farmer in moderate circumstances, 
was among the early adventurers to the western part of Vir- 
ginia. Having by industry and economy saved a sum suffi- 
cient to purchase a valuable tract of land in what is now 
Nelson County, Kentucky, he determined to settle upon it, 
in the early part of the year 1789. In descending the Ohio 
river with his family, a wife and eight children, the eldest 
a ijromising youth of nineteen years of age and the young- 
est about three months old, they were captured by a band 
of Pottawattomies, who had infested the river and captured 
several descending boats. His eldest son refused to sur- 
render after the Indians had taken possession of the boat, 
although entreated to do so by his mother, but fought des- 
perately until he fell covered with wounds. One of the In- 
dians then deliberately opened him, took out his heart, 
broiled it on the coals of the fire and ate it in the presence 



84 Readings in Indiana History 

of his afflicted parents (as the Indian afterward, by way of 
apology, informed Mrs. Asliby, on account of the boy's 
bravery, for the purpose of making himself equally brave). 

On the capture of Mr. Asliby and his family the Indians 
made arrangements to return to their villages, on the St. 
Joseph and Elkhart rivers, in the northern part of this 
State (Indiana). Being so remote from any white settle- 
ments, they did not closely confine their prisoners, suppos- 
ing it impracticable for them, in their destitute situation, 
to cross the Ohio river and make their way through the 
wilderness to their friends. 

On the second day after their captivity they sent Mr. 
Ashby and his oldest remaining son (a lad of seventeen 
years of age) to procure timber for packsaddles, prepara- 
tory to their return to their villages. While thus engaged 
Mrs. Ashby, by what she observed among the Indians, was 
led to believe that they were making arrangements to burn 
Mr. Ashby before they commenced their journey. This she 
secretly communicated to her husband and advised him to 
attempt an escape, to which he objected, preferring, as he 
said, that they should suffer and die together. She replied 
that she could not endure to see him burned to death, which 
she was sure they intended to do, and that he might possibly 
succeed in reaching the settlements and be thereby enabled 
to relieve such of the family as should survive their suf- 
ferings. 

Overcome by the arguments and entreaties of his heroic 
wife, he reluctantly consented to leave his family in their 
deplorable situation and make the almost hopeless attempt 
to escape. Fortunately, or to use Mr. Ashby 's own words, 
providentially, late in the afternoon they directed him to 
procure a few more crotches for pack saddles,^^ which are 
obtained by taking suitable forks from small saplings. It 
necessarily required some time to find such as were suitable 
for the purpose. The eldest son having been apprised by 
his mother of his father's intentions, wished to accompany 
him, to which the father objected, believing the boy could 

^^ Indian pack saddles are simple crotches, or forked sticks, the crotch being 
placed over the! horse's back, and the load tied to the lower ends of the forks, on 
both sides. 



Indian Border Wars 85 

not possibly succeed in swimming tlie Ohio river, and that it 
would only be certain death for him to make the attempt. 
Here again the intercession of the wife and mother pre- 
vailed, and silenced the father's objections by a single word, 
or whisper, as it liad to be, to avoid detection. 

Then leaving his distressed family, he passed from the 
camp, appearing to search for the timber they w^ere sent 
in quest of. As soon as they were out of sight of their ene- 
mies the father and son ran with all speed a short distance 
dow^n the river, procured from the bank each a couple of dry 
logs such as they could handle, lashed them together with 
bark, launched themselves upon the river, and by great ex- 
ertions arrived safely on the opposite shore just as their 
pursuers arrived at the shore they had left. They pursued 
their journey through the night, until from fatigue and hun- 
ger and having their clothes nearly torn from their bodies 
by the brushes and briers, they became so weak and their 
feet so bruised they were unable to travel further, and again 
had recourse to the means by which they had eluded their 
pursuers at the outset. 

Thus after floating down the river for two days, they 
were safely landed at Louisville; Kentucky, on the fourth 
day after their escape from their enemies, in the most de- 
plorable condition that can be imagined, where they re- 
ceived that attention which such sufferers are entitled to by 
their friends. 

Mrs. Ashby with her remaining children (the four oldest 
sons and the two youngest daughters) were by their enemies 
taken on to the villages. Having to walk and carry her in- 
fant child in her arms, she was unable through fatigue and 
suffering to give it sufficient nourishment to sustain life, 
and it expired on the journey. The afflicted mother was 
only allowed time to scratch away the loose earth and lower 
it with her hands and place a few limbs and bushes over its 
lonely grave, which she declared was the most melancholy 
scene to her during her whole captivity. Mrs. Ashby and 
the two youngest of her surviving children were taken to 
the villages on the St. Joseph river, in the vicinity of the 
Elkhart; the three eldest (except the eldest son, who es- 



86 Readings in Indiana History 

caped some two or three years before) to the Illinois river, 
where they endured their cruel captivity until relieved after 
the Treaty of Greenville, in 1795. 

Mr. Ashby, having escaped from captivity as above re- 
lated, made unremitting exertions in behalf of his captive 
and suffering family. In order to procure the means, if 
possible, to liberate them, he sold his fine tract of land. Be- 
ing a man of remarkable firmness, perseverance, and brav- 
ery, he embraced every opportunity to penetrate the Indian 
country. Hence we find him with Colonel Hamtramck in 
his expedition up the Wabash in 1790, and with the mounted 
exi3edition to the Wabash in 1791 under General Scott.^" 
His son escaped with him in General St. Clair's defeat the 
same year, in which he received a dangerous wound. He 
performed several journeys through the wilderness to Vin- 
cennes, then the most frontier post, at the risk of his life, 
and to the headquarters of General Wayne's army, in 
Search of information of his family. He became well known 
to General Wayne and his officers and acquired their good 
will by his unremitting exertions to obtain his family. 

In one of his visits to headquarters, a Pottawattomie 
Indian having been captured by Captain William Wells and 
his party of spies, Mr. Ashby obtained permission to visit 
the captured Indian in his confinement with an interpreter 
to make inquiries in respect to his family. The Indian at 
sight of him became sullen, covered himself with his blanket 
and refused to speak, which surprised the officer and inter- 
preter, as on all other occasions he conversed freely. At 
the treaty of Greenville, Mr. Ashby being present, and the 
Indian being released, the former at once recognized in the 
latter the individual who had committed the barbarous act 
on the lifeless body of his son at the time of the capture of 
his family. During his stay at the treaty, the Indian al- 
ways avoided coming in contact with him. After the treaty 
was concluded Mr. Ashby came on to Fort Wayne to meet 
his long-suffering family. (3n the arrival of part of his 
children late in the autumn he learned that his long-absent 
wife would be brought in within a few days, and that she 

" See selection number 27 above. 



Indian Border Wars 87 

was then at the Elkliart village. He proceeded alone from 
Fort Wayne, altlioiigli at the time it was considered a peril- 
ous and dangerous undertaking, and on the second day met 
her on foot, with a heavy load of their baggage. Without 
hesitation he drew his knife and disencumbered her of the 
load by cutting the straps which confined it. After some 
altercation on the part of the Indians, who made some 
threats, at the earnest request of Mrs. Asliby, he took up 
the load and conveyed it to the fort himself, though he has 
since assured the writer that it was only at the solicitations 
of his beloved wife that he was prevailed upon to comply 
with their demands. 

Having thus regained his family, after nearly seven 
years of suffering, he settled in Shelby County, Kentucky, 
where by his prudence, economy and industry he long lived 
comfortably, beloved and respected by his neighbors. From 
thence he removed to the southern part of Indiana, where 
both himself and his venerable partner died a few years 
past (at an advanced age) within a short time of each other. 
He had been for the last twenty years of his life a respect- 
able preacher of the gospel of the Baptist denomination. 
Such of his children as yet survive reside in Kentucky. 
What patriot and friend to his country will say that such 
sufferers do not deserve the gratitude and bounty of their 
country? 

30. Stories of Indian Captivity: A Thrilling; Rescue 

(Froiii .1 Pioneer I/intoiij of Indiana, by Col. William M. CocKRUAr [I'.HiTJ, 

pp. 105-127.) 

In 1792 James Greenway, Thomas Doyle and Stephen 
Murtree were soldiers in the United States service and were 
on duty at Vincennes under command of Major Hamtramck. 
During the summer of that year their term of enlistment 
was out and they were given their discharges. They did 
not intend to go back into the service for awhile, so tliey de- 
termined to fit out a hunting and trapping outfit, as in that 
early day there were but tw^o kinds of employment in the 
Northwest Territory: one was soldiering and hunting In- 
dians and the other was hunting gamc^ and trapping for 
furs. 



88 Readings in Indiana History 

Securing two large Indian canoes with such things as 
were necessary for their use, they started down the Wabash 
intending to hunt and trap on that river and its tributaries. 
In the fall, as they were floating down the Wabash, they 
came to a small island seven or eight miles south of the 
mouth of White river. Examining the island, they found 
that it would be a good place to make a camp. So selecting 
a site giving them a view up and dow^n the river on both 
banks, they built a barricade suitable for defense and inside 
of tliat built a small cabin. There was a Frenchman with 
the party by the name of Pierre DeVan, who looked after 
the camp and hunted in the neighborhood. He was an in- 
teresting character in many ways and proved to be a hero of 
the first water. He had been much with the Indians and 
understood the language of several tribes. He had a great 
hatred for all Indians, as they had murdered his uncle, who 
was the only relative he had in this country. 

The fall was spent in hunting bear and deer for their 
skins, the winter in trapping. During the early winter the 
hunters had gone down the river and while the Frenchman 
was roaming over the little island he saw an Indian canoe 
tied to the shore opposite the mouth of a creek on the west 
bank of the river. He slipped back and hid himself in a con- 
venient place to see w^hat went on. He didn't have long to 
wait, for an Indian was seen to rise up from back of a log 
and look in every direction for some time. Having con- 
cluded that no one was there, the red man went into the 
camp and commenced loading himself with camping outfit 
to take to his canoe and while in the midst of his act the 
Frenchman shot him. 

[No more Indians were seen around the place, however, 
and the hunters continued their hunting until liioh water 
drove them out in the spring. In April they made a new 
camp on the hills east of the Wabash. They then went back 
and brought their canoes up a little creek. In so doing they 
found what they thought was a bear's den.] 

The next morning they all went to a place seen by one 
of them the day before, which he felt sure was a regular 
bear's den in a cave or hole in the bluff. While they were 



Indian Border Wars 89 

hunting- for the place they heard a loud, piercing scream 
not far away, coming apparently from a child. It was very 
loud at first, but gradually grew weaker until it ceased. The 
hunters were greatly startled and could not account for 
such a noise in this great wilderness. They hid in the 
bushes for a while waiting for further developments, but 
did not see or hear anything more. 

They resolved to find out the cause of the screaming and 
it was determined that Doyle should go first, the other two 
to keep him in sight and be governed by his motions. He 
crawled through the thick brush and when they were near 
a high bluff he signaled to the others to come to him. He 
had seen smoke and heard voices that he believed to be those 
of Indians. The smoke seemed to come from the eastern 
side of the bluffs and they determined to go farther around. 
Advancing very carefully for two or three hundred feet, 
they could see the fire and going still farther could see that 
there were several Indians around it and a little to one side 
a white man and woman were sitting on a log with their 
hands tied behind them. There were four Indians in view 
and the hunters each selected one to shoot at. After firing 
they determined they would reload their guns where they 
were and trust to luck for the outcome. They all fired at 
once, killing two and fatally wounding another one, who fell 
in the fire ; the fourth one ran around the side of the bluff. 

After waiting a while the hunters slipped to where the 
prisoners were, cut the leather thongs they were bound 
with and '^finished" the Indian, who was kicking and 
squirming in the fire. Doyle determined to follow the other 
Indian and in a short time a shot was heard in the direction 
he had gone. Soon an Indian was seen running eighty or 
ninety yards away. The two hunters fired at him and he 
dropped his gun, but kept on running. On going around 
the bluff in the direction Doyle had gone, they came upon 
his lifeless body, killed no doubt by the Indian at whom they 
had just been shooting. 

The prisoners released were James Griscom and his 
wife, Rachel. The screaming heard by the hunters was that 
of little Mary Griscom who the day before had a fall that 



90 Readings in Indiana History 

had hurt her ankle so that she could not walk and had to be 
carried for several miles to where the camp was made. She 
was no better the morning the hunters found them and 
would hinder their time in marching, so the Indians re- 
solved to kill her. One of them gathered her up and going 
to the top of the bluff, threw her over to the bottom, many 
feet below, killing her. 

[Three Indian hunters soon returned and were killed by 
the white men. Learning that an Indian town was only a 
few miles away, they determined to build a new camp. In 
the meantime DeVan and Murtree scouted around to see if 
they could find any Indians. DeVan put on the dress of a 
dead Indian and went into the Indian village where he found 
other white captives of the Griscom party, — a Mrs. Talbert 
and child and two children by the name of Hope.] 

The party was moved up to the new position Griscom 
had found. It was after dark when DeVan came slipping 
into camp and reported that there were eight or nine war- 
riors and an old man who seemed to be the head and that 
he had seen the white woman and the boy, but not the other 
children. The Indians seemed to want him to go away, as 
they told him his friends were to the east. As there was a 
big creek he could not cross to the south, he would have to 
go to the east quite a distance, then south. While the old 
man and the warriors were in consultation he had a chance 
to say only two words in English to Mrs. Talbert — 
' ' Friends near. ' ' She said nothing, but looked at him as if 
she understood. The old man sent a young Indian with 
him for about two miles east and put him in a trace that 
would take him to the creek where he could cross it. He 
went south far enough to feel sure that he was not watched, 
then turned into a thicket, waited for dark, and came into 
camp. 

They all held a consultation and it was decided best not 
to attack the Indians, as there were too many warriors, but 
to try and get Mrs. Talbert by stealth, if possible, and not 
to attempt that until late in the night. 

Waiting until after eleven o'clock, DeVan, Murtree and 
Greenway started, the hunters intending to go near the edge 



Indian Border Wars 91 

of the town so tliat DeVan could have a point to come to if 
attacked. Then DeVan was to do his part in his own way. 
Everything was very quiet for nearly an hour after they 
had taken their station. At that time three Indians came 
to the town and they must have been bearers of bad news, 
for soon there was great excitement among them. Two 
women were screaming and tearing their hair. 

It was fully two o'clock when everything was quiet 
again. Soon the stillness was broken and a terrible noise 
raised by snapping and snarling and howding of many dogs 
and the screaming of a child, which raised a great commo- 
tion among the Indians. Soon the Frenchman with the lit- 
tle boy in his arms and Mrs. Talbert after him came run- 
ning to where the two hunters w^ere. The child was still 
moaning so loud that the Indians could tell the direction in 
which they had gone. It was placed in its mother's arms 
and she did all she could to make it keep still. DeVan told 
the hunters it would be best for them to take the woman 
and child back to the others and for all of them to start 
north by the north star and leave him to check the Indians. 
They did this and it was but a little while until the crack of 
a rifle was heard, then everything became still. The party 
had been slipping away for some time when another rifle 
was heard but a little way to the rear. In a few moments 
DeVan came up with them and told them to go as they were 
until just before day and to find a good place for defense, 
then stop at that place ; that there were several Indians fol- 
lowing them, but he would keep them in check until day- 
light. 

Just at the break of day they came to a small creek, 
where there was some large fallen timber that would make 
a good place for defense. Hurriedly piling logs between 
two large fallen trees, they made two end walls, which pro- 
vided a fort that could not be successfully attacked unless 
the enemy had such numbers that they could carry it by 
storm. Soon another rifle sliot was heard and this time a 
shot was fired at the blaze or flash of DeVan 's rifle. In 
a few minutes DeVan was seen and would luwe passed liad 
not Murtree run to him and brought him into the improvised 



92 Readings in Indiana History 

fort. They kept a careful watch for tlie Indians and in a 
little while two were seen, half bent, one behind the other, 
following the trail made by DeVan. Greenway and Mur- 
tree instantly fired on them. One fell and the other showed 
that he was hit, but managed to get behind an obstruction. 
Another Indian rushed to the one shot down and dragged 
him out of sight, DeVan shooting at him, but missing him. 
After this, during all the day, a sharp lookout was kept, but 
no more Indians made their appearance. 

The little boy, who was hurt in the morning, was suffer- 
ing very much. DeVan said that when he ran out of the 
Indian tepee (tent) with the child in his arms, on running 
around it he ran into a dog kennel, where an old bitch had a 
litter of good-sized pups, and such another fuss as they 
made he had never before heard and the old dog bit the 
child through the calf of the leg. 

In the evening not long before sundown there was heard 
in the woods to the west of them the chattering of many 
squirrels, which was thought very x^robably to be caused by 
slipping Indians, and a very sharp lookout was kept in that 
direction. Just as the grey dusk of evening came on Mr. 
Griscom had his arm broken by a shot that came from a 
tree not more than sixty yards away. The Indian had 
climbed up a little tree behind a larger one so that he could 
see over the log pile. When he shot he tried to get back of 
the large tree, but in his hurry the small tree swayed so 
much with him that his body came into view from back of 
the large tree and DeVan shot him, his body falling to the 
ground. 

[Two or three more Indians were killed the following 
night before they were beaten oif. The hunters now built 
a log cabin which they could easily defend. Greenway and 
Murtree had land warrants. Hearing that there was good 
land up Black creek, they decided to go there for a day's 
hunt.] 

It was late when DeVan returned; the other two were 
there before him and had prepared a temporary camp. 
DeVan said that when he was about two miles up the river 
and one mile south of it he heard voices and, listening, found 



Indian Border Wars 93 

that they were coming nearer. Secreting himself in a thick 
chister of vines, in a short time he saw six persons passing 
within about sixty yards of where he was hidden. These 
persons consisted of three Indian men, one Indian woman 
and two white children, the girl being small and the boy a 
good-sized lad and both dressed in buckskin the same as the 
Indians. All were carrying vessels of different kinds that 
he thought were filled with honey. 

DeVan's report made it certain that the two white chil- 
dren were near them and in the hands of the Indians, and 
from Mrs. Talbert's statement it was almost certain that 
they were the Hope children. It was decided to make 
reconnoissance that night in the neighborhood where DeVan 
saw the Indians and see if they could locate their camp. 
They went to the place where DeVan thought he was hidden 
when the Indians and white children went near him. On 
going in this direction for as much as a mile a dog com- 
menced to bark at them not far away. The hunters re- 
mained quiet for some time and then DeVan proposed that 
he should go near and find out why the dog was there. He 
had been gone but a short time when two or three dogs com- 
menced barking. Talking in the Indian tongue was heard, 
but neither Murtree nor Greenway understood what they 
were saying. 

Finally a light was made by pushing the chunks of wood 
Tip together and several persons were seen moving around. 
DeVan slipped back to the place where the rest of the party 
were and said that he had gotten within one hundred and 
fifty feet of the camp where the fire was and that there were 
three or four wigwams. The Indians thought that it was 
the wolves prowling around that caused the dogs to bark, 
so the fire was made up to scare them away. After talking 
over the situation they determined to slip around the camp 
at a safe distance and see what they could find out. 

On going around they found a spring four or five hun- 
dred feet from the fire that evidently was used, as it was 
covered with fresh brush to keep the sun out ; the dogs, all 
the time they were walking around, keeping up a continual 
barking, following the direction the hunters were going. 



94 Readings in Indiana History 

Several Indians were seen moving around tlie fire ; finally 
one of them got some splinters and made a torch in order 
to shine in the eyes of whatever animal it was and with their 
guns they started in the direction the dogs indicated, en- 
couraging them to attack. The Imnters saw that they 
would have to kill the Indians or get away, and they thought 
it would lessen their chance to recapture the children if they 
were to shoot the Indians, so they quietly slipped away in 
the direction of the river. 

The dogs followed them a little way and then went l3ack. 
The Indians were seen throwing their torches away. The 
hunters went back to their camp satisfied with their night 's 
work in locating the Indians ' camp where they believed the 
children were, the question uppermost in their minds being 
how they could recapture them. They felt it was their duty 
to release them if it could be done ; but they did not want to 
run unnecessary risk in doing it. 

[Before day the white men returned and hid themselves 
near the spring.] 

Just at daylight three Indian women went to the spring 
for water and soon after four Indians, with their guns, 
started on a hunt followed by three dogs. After this there 
was stillness for some time, then a shot was heard in the 
direction that the Indians had gone and in quick succession 
two or three more shots. The dogs were making a terrible 
noise as if furiously barking at some animal at bay. The 
Indian camp was soon in a stir and two other Indians with 
guns started toward the sound of the combat. After going a 
sliort distance they stopped and were seen to examine some- 
thing on the ground and started to follow the trail made the 
night before by the white hunters while going around the 
Indian camp. 

These last two Indians went for some distance, finally 
halloed to some one in camp and were soon joined by two 
other Indians. They all followed the trail until it came to 
where the hunters started to their camp when the two In- 
dians came out with the torch. They seemed to be holding 
a consultation, and then the last two Indians that liad come 



Indian Border Wars 95 

out hurried to tlio camp and got their guns, all four starting 
on the trail. Soon after the Indians had left a white boy 
and an Indian woman were seen coming to the spring with 
an iron kettle carried between them on a pole, followed by 
a little white girl. When at the spring the Indian woman 
commenced to fill the kettle. The hunters slipped up be- 
hind them; DeVan caught the woman and tied a thick 
piece of rawhide in her mouth so that she could not make 
a noise and tied her hands behind her. Greenway spoke to 
James Hope, the boy, and told him that Mr. Griscom had 
sent for them. The little girl was badly frightened, but 
James quieted her. Hiding the kettle in a thicket, they 
started, taking a direction that would bring them to the 
river several miles east of that place. 

The Hope children gave a very interesting history of 
their experience while they were prisoners. The three 
young hunters who had them for their part of the boat-fight 
spoils were looked up to by the other Indians as their very 
best warriors. Their mother, to whom they gave the Hope 
children, was the widow of a prominent chief, who was 
killed in Kentucky some years before. In adopting the 
children in jolace of two of hers who had died, she first gave 
them articles that had belonged to the dead children and 
then had them take off their clothing and put on a buckskin 
suit. She next brought some tea in a bowl, sprinkling some 
of it over them, then giving them a small portion to drink, 
after which she drank a small portion herself. After this 
ceremony she took them into her wigwam and gave each of 
them a number of skins for their beds. James Hope said 
that no one could have been kinder to them than was this 
Indian mother. She would have them sit down by her and 
would pat and caress them, calling them by their Indian 
names. At other times she would look at them and cry most 
piteously and then caress them with all the affection of a 
fond mother. 

James said that the morning he told Mrs. Talbert that 
they were going on a hunting excursion was the last time he 
had heard of the town where she was a prisoner. Eight 



96 Readings in Indiana History 

men and four women besides their Indian mother came to 
the place where he was recaptured with all their effects and 
none of them had heard of their former home since. 

These unfortunate people were high-minded and did not 
want to be a burden to the hunters, who were there for the 
profit of hunting and trapping for fur. The hunters pro- 
posed to Mr. Griscom that he, his wife, Mrs. Talbert and the 
two Hope children should remain on the island until they 
could do better or the high water forced them to go away, 
and Griscom should assist them in hunting and trapping 
and share in the profits ; and the two women, with the help 
of the children, taking care of the camp. This was agreed 
to and everything was put in readiness for the fall and win- 
ter's hunt, all the time they being very careful to keep watch 
for the Indians. Greenway made a trip to Vincennes during 
the warm weather and learned that there was great activity 
among the Indians, that they were continually on the war- 
path and that there had been many skirmishes between them 
and the Kentuckians, who were always as ready to fight as 
the Indians were. 

The warm weather had finally gone and the fall had 
come. The hunters were on the chase, killing bear and 
deer. Buffalo were plenty in small herds and many of them 
were killed. The meat was cured by drying it and the hides 
prepared for market. There were no incidents other than 
such as come to hunters during the fall and winter. They 
secured the hides of many beaver and other fur-bearing an- 
imals. Near the last of February the high water came and 
they had to abandon their comfortable quarters, all going to 
Vincennes to sell their peltry and live until the water went 
down. 

Griscom and his wife remained for several years in the 
neighborhood of Vincennes, hunting and trapping, but 
finally moved to the Illinois country. 

Mrs. Talbert married a discharged soldier at Vincennes 
and later moved to the neighborhood of the Yellow Banks, 
now Rockport. 

The two Hope children, James and Jane, found a soldier 
in the fort at Vincennes who was a cousin of their mother's. 



Indian Border Wars 97 

He took tlieni in charge until his enlistment was out and 
then went with them to the country north of the Cumberland 
river not far south of where Bowling Green, Kentucky, is 
now located. 

Greenway, Murtree, and DeVan enlisted in the army and 
were with Wayne at the battle of Maumee. After the war 
w^as over DeVan came back to his old hunting grounds and 
was on the chase until just before the battle of Tippecanoe, 
when General Harrison engaged him as scout to do some 
work in finding out what the Indians west of the Wabasli 
were doing and if it were likely The Prophet could control 
them. His report was so satisfactory to General Harrison 
that he enlisted him in the army and gave him an easy posi- 
tion in the quartermaster 's department. 

31. The Ranger Service 

(From A Pioneer History of Indiana, by Col. William M. Cockrum [1907], 

pp. 203-218.) 

For ten years after the Treaty of Greenville, the western In- 
dians were tolerably quiet. They had fought nobly for the Ohio 
river boundary, but had lost. It was the policy of the United 
States to secure the title to the Indian lands as fast as possible. 
The instructions to Governors St. Clair and Harrison made it their 
most important duty to hold councils with the tribesmen and buy 
their land. A favorite way to accomplish this was to load the chiefs 
with presents, and in that manner procure the cession of land. A 
series of treaties followed the arrival of Harrison as governor at 
Vincennes — September 17, 1802, at Vincennes; August 18, 1804, 
at Vincennes; August 27, at Vincennes; November 3, at St. Louis; 
August 21, 1805, at Grouseland, near Vincennes; December 30, 
1805, at Vincennes. By this time the Indians were, with good rea- 
son, becoming alarmed. They had in these councils given away 
nearly half of what is now the two States of Indiana and Illinois. 
Their so-called sales amounted to over 40,000 square miles. They 
could not now reach the Ohio river without crossing lands belong- 
ing to the whites. Little towns were springing up all along the 
river and "squatters" had penetrated to the center of the territoiy. 
Roads were being opened through different parts of the country. 
The most important of these roads led from Louisville to Vin- 
cennes. As the Indians were gradually crowded back from their 
hunting grounds they became ugly and sullen. When they came to 

7—1643 



98 Readings in Indiana History 

a pioneer's fence they threw it down. They killed his hogs, stole 
his horses, and frequently got themselves killed for their deviltry. 
It was soon found best to keep the Indians away from the settle- 
ments. In order to do this, companies of rangers were employed by 
the United States to patrol the roads. The following selections illus- 
trate this ranger service on the Vincennes Trace and the roads 
leading from it to the Ohio. 

Vincennes, Indiana Territory, April 16, 1807. 

Captain William Hargrove : 

This will be handed to you by Ell Ernest, one of our 
scouts. Since you were here last Friday, the lOtli iiist., two 
of our scouts were in and report that last Sunday night, the 
12th, a band of roving Indians captured a white family on 
the old Indian road from this place to Clarksville, this side 
of the Mudhole (near where Otwell, Indiana, now stands), 
killed the man and took into captivity the woman and her 
five children. Governor Harrison and Adjutant-General 
John Small are both away. The Governor, before starting, 
instructed me to write you that, if it were possible without 
taking too many men out of your settlement, you enlist at 
least twenty men for ranger service, giving preference at 
all times to men who have been on Indian campaigns, but 
not to leave any family without some able-bodied man to 
protect them, unless they are in block-houses."^'* This should 
be done at once so that the men can be on duty in five days. 
Send in two days from the time you receive this by the same 
hand an answer. I will then send you instructions as to 
your duties. 

By the order of the Governor. 

John Gibson, Secretary Indiana Territory. 

Vincennes, Indiana Territory, April 20, 1807. 

Captain William Hargrove : 

Your report by the hand of scout Ernest has been re- 
ceived. The Governor is very much pleased at your prompt- 
ness. The supplies for the families of those who will serve 
as rangers will be sent as often as needed. 

's Block-house, a fort-like Iok structure, with upper story projecting over the 
lower, to enable those inside to fire down upon an attacking party. 



Indian Border Wars 99 

I have ordered sent you today one sack of salt and ten 
bags of meal for you to distribute before you leave home. 
Also twenty-five pounds of powder, twenty-five pounds of 
lead, two hundred gun-flints, one bundle of tow/"'" You will 
divide your force and form a squad of six men under a re- 
liable man, who will act as sergeant, to patrol the main 
traveled way from your settlement south to the Ohio river, 
at Red Banks. Instruct the Sergeant to make two trips 
each way every ten days. I will send a scout who will come 
with the men and carts that bring the supplies. He will go 
on duty with the squad patrolling to the south. The other 
thirteen men will be with you; also one scout and two 
friendly Indians. You are to patrol the old Indian trace 
that leads from this place to Clarksville, on the Ohio river, 
from a point where this old road crosses White river and 
going as far as thirty-five miles east of the Mudhole. The 
two Indians are to be directly under the orders of the scout, 
who will keep you informed of the orders he gives them. 

Once every week send a report of your work to this of- 
fice. It has been ordered that movers coming over the old 
trace shall be held on the other end until a number of them 
are together. Then they will travel with the rangers as 
they are coming west on the trace. Any persons coming 
into your territory will be sent to a point out of danger by 
you, if coming to the older settlements. If they intend to 
form a new settlement they must build a fort and stay in it 
until the season for raids is past. They can prepare houses 
where they intend to locate, but they must remain in the 
block-houses at night. 

If there should be extra men with the movers who have 
had experience as hunters or in Indian fighting enlist them 
if you can. I hope that your experience in Indian warfare 
will help you protect your men. The roving bands of In- 
dians prowling over this unprotected country in the warm 
season aim to murder helpless people for their scalps and 
to capture prisoners for what they can realize from their 
sale for servants to the British posts on the lakes. They are 
not hunting for armed soldiers. A careful and vigilant 

'° Tow, flox libor used for cleaning out guns. 



loo Readings in Indiana History 

scouting service will in a great measure do away with these 
prowling bands of Indians. 
By order of the Governor. 

John Gibson, Secretary Indiana Territory. 

ViNCENNES, Indiana Territory, April 29, 1807. 

Captain William Hargrove, In the Ranger Service of Indi- 
ana Territory: 

Your report by the half-breed Twenny came to hand this 
evening. The Governor wishes to say that he is well pleased 
with your work and fully agrees with you that the route 
from the forks of White river, south to the Yellow Banks, 
on the Ohio river (now Rockport, Indiana), should be pa- 
trolled at least once each week. The three men that you 
have recruited can take the place of some of your best men. 
You will send them over the route in company with one of 
the scouts. The Governor suggests that you send scout 
FuQuay with them, as he is familiar with the country south 
of you on the Ohio river. 

In your next report fully describe what was found on 
the Yellow Bank route and if any Indian sign has been seen 
near the Ohio river. 

It is utterly impossible at this time to furnish anything 
like a company of men to assist the father of Mrs. Larkins 
in releasing her from captivity. The Governor directs that 
you say to Colonel Greenup that if he can bring the aid from 
Kentucky that he thinks he can, scouts and guides will be 
furnished them from this post and that he is truly sorry 
that he has not the men to furnish all the help needed. 

John Gibson, Secretary of Indiana Territory. 

By order of Wm. H. Harrison, Governor Indiana Ter- 
ritory. 

Vincennes, Indiana Territory, May 22, 1807. 

Captain William Hargrove, Commanding a Detachment of 
Rangers : 
Ell Ernest is in with your report. Will send you a Cree 
Indian for the one you say is too lazy to hunt. This Indian 



Indian Border Wars loi 

has been here for a long time and has the reputation of be- 
ing a great hunter. He can keep your rangers in meat. I 
have had an interview with him and he is delighted with the 
prospect of going as a scout. Ernest is acquainted with 
him and can make him understand what is to be done. Er- 
nest said that he saw a number of Indians in bathing on the 
south bank of White river and a number of them were fish- 
ing. They did not see him. As they were near here, a 
platoon of cavalry has been sent with several scouts to look 
after them. 

These troops, before they return, may report to you and 
will inform you what these Indians were up to. There are 
always some contrary people in all walks of life who are 
hard to manage. The ones you report are not all who have 
been troublesome. There is no deviating from the rule. 
Anyone who refuses to stay within the fort when ordered, 
arrest and send to this post, under guard. When the Gov- 
ernment does all that it can to protect its people they must 
and shall obey the rules. This territory is under no law 
that can enforce obedience but the military, and all of its 
subjects must obey the governing rule or be sent out of it. 

By order of the Governor. 

John Gibson^ Secretary of Indiana Territory. 

ViNCENNEs, Indiana Teeritory. June 7, 1807. 
Captain William Hargrove, in the Ranger Service : 

The requisition for provisions has been filled and for- 
warded under escort. One of our scouts reports that In- 
dians were seen passing to the west on the south side of 
White river a little way west of the place where the Indian 
trace to Louisville crosses that river. Whether they are a 
roving band of friendly Indians or hostile ones has not been 
found out at these headquarters. There was a runner sent 
to David Robb's notifying him about the Indians. When 
you receive this you had better return to this end of your 
route and leave one-half of your men under your ranking 
non-commissioned officer. With the rest you had better ex- 
amine the country to the west on the south side of the river 
as far as two or three miles west of David Robb 's place and 



I02 Readings in Indiana History 

see if you can find the cause of these Indians prowling over 
that section. If the fort at White Oak Springs is too small 
to hold the newcomers, have them build another blockhouse 
near it and have them both enclosed inside the same stock- 
ade with only two gates for the two forts. If you can en- 
list of the new arrivals as many as twenty-five men for serv- 
ice at this post your effort will be duly appreciated. The 
time of enlistment of quite a number of our troops expires 
next month and at least twenty-five Kentuckians will not re- 
enlist. 

By the direction of William H. Harrison, Governor of 
Indiana Territory. 

John Gibson,. Secretary of Indiana Territory. 

Headquarters Indiana Territory, 

ViNCENNES, July 6, 1807. 

Captain William Hargrove, Commanding a Detachment of 
Rangers : 

Last Saturday, the 4tli inst., a number of friendly In- 
dians were in to see the celebration of Independence Day. A 
half-breed Delaware Indian named "Swimming Otter" re- 
ported that there was likely to be a raid made by young 
Indian hunters on boats loaded with people, and their plun- 
der, coming to this section by the Wabash or going down 
the Ohio river. He said that the band would be led by an 
Indian who had lost his father in a battle with a boat crew 
near the Red Banks (now Henderson, Kentucky). The 
scouts thoroughly interrogated the Indian and he has prom- 
ised to let them know the time they are to start and the 
route they wall follow. 

The raiders will not get started, so the half-breed says, 
in less than ten days, and he will be here two or three 
days before they go. You will then be informed by a run- 
ner so that you can thwart their designs if they attempt to 
cross your territory. It is reported here by friendly In- 
dians that a band of Miami Indians captured a boat and its 
crew on the Ohio river some forty miles beJow Clarksville, 
killing two men and carrying two women and four children 
into captivity. You can do no better than you have done. 



Indian Border Wars 103 

Thoroughly patrol the three traveled ways. You could not 
do any good by roaming over the wilderness unless it was 
to make a short cut to reach a point on one of the other 
routes. The white people coming to this section are on the 
three traces or down the Ohio and up the Wabash river. 

For the Governor. 

By John Gibson, Secretary of the Indiana Territory. 

32. Tlu'eatening; Himior of the Indians: Letters from the 

Frontier, 1809-1810 

(From American State Papers, Indian Affairs, I, 7J)S-790.) 

Bands of hostile Indians waylaid immigrants on the Ohio and 
Wabash rivers, and on the various trails. If they succeeded, it 
encouraged them to make another raid. If the Indians were killed, 
as scores of them were, their friends returned for vengeance. A 
generation of young Indians w^as growing up who did not know of 
the old wars. The Prophet was gradually winning the power and 
favor which had formerly belonged to Little Thrtle. The following 
letters, culled from dozens of such, show the condition on the fron- 
tier of Indiana just before the war of 1812. 

Fort Wayne, 8th April, 1809. 

The Indians seem to be agitated respecting the conduct, 
and, as they say, the intentions of the Shawnee Prophet.^" 
The Chippewas, Ottawas, and Pottawattomies are hurrying 
away from him, and say that their reason for doing so is 
because he has told them to receive the tomahawk from him 
and destroy all of the white people at Vincennes and as 
low down as the mouth of the Ohio and as high up as Cincin- 
nati; [saying] that the Great Spirit had directed that they 
should do so, at the same time threatening them with de- 
struction if they refused to comply with what he proposed. 

Vincennes, 3rd May, 1809. 

Mr. is decidedly of the opinion that the Prophet 

will attack our settlements. His opinion is formed from a 
variety of circumstances, but principally from the com- 
munication made to Mr. by two chiefs, his friends, 

*" Shawnee Prophet was a brother of Teciim'seh, and was present at the battle 
of Tippecanoe. 



104 Readings in Indiana History 

the substance of which was that the Prophet and his fol- 
lowers had determined to commence as soon as they were 
prepared, and to ' ' sweep all the white people from the Wa- 
bash and White rivers, after which they intended to attack 
the Miamis. ' ' 

About eight days ago he (the Prophet) had with him 
three hundred and tifty warriors, well armed with rifles, and 
tolerably supplied with ammunition; they had also bows 
and arrows, war clubs, and a kind of spear. 

Detroit, June 16th, 1809. 

The influence of the Prophet lias Tbeen great, and his ad- 
vice to the Indians injurious to them and the United States. 
We have the fullest evidence that his object has been to 
form a combination of them in hostility to the United States. 
The powerful influence of the British has been exerted in 
a way alluring to the savage character. 

ViNCENNEs, 14tli June, 1810. 

I have received information from various sources, which 
has produced entire conviction on my mind that the Prophet 
is organizing a most extensive combination against the 
United States. 

The person who had charge of the boat sent up the [Wa- 
bash] river with the annuity salt^^ has just returned, and re- 
ports that the Prophet and the Kickapoos who were with 
him refused to receive that which he (the agent) was di- 
rected to deliver to them, on his way up the Wabash; but 
he was ordered by the Prophet to leave the salt on the bank 
of the river, as he could not determine whether he would 
receive it or not until his brother, the war chief, arrived 
from Detroit. On the return of the boat the master was 
directed to take the salt on board, as they were determined 
to have nothing to do with it. Whilst they were rolling the 
salt into the boat the Prophet seized the master by the hair 
and shook him violently, asking him whether he was an 
American. 



*^ Annuity salt is salt paid annually in compliance with the terms of a treaty, 
and for a part of the purchase price of Indian lands. 



Indian Border Wars 105 

33. The Council at Vincennes, 1810 

(From Life Amony the Indians, by James B. FInley [1860], pp. 188-104.) 

Two Shawnee Indians took advantage of the hostile temper of 
the Indians from 1804 to 1810 to unite them into a league for the 
purpose of driving the white people beyond the Ohio. These lead- 
ers, Tecumseh and his brother, The Prophet, were men of great 
ability. Tecumseh had learned the art of war from Little Turtle, 
under whom he had fought at St. Clair's Defeat and Fallen Tim- 
bers. The Prophet was an eloquent speaker and opposed the tak- 
ing on of the customs of the white men by his brethren ; especially 
did he oppose the liquor trade among the Indians. 

At first the brothers made their home at Andersontown, the 
present site of Anderson, among the Delawares. At the command 
of Harrison they left there and began to gather the warlike natives 
into a new village which received the name Prophetstown near the 
present site of Lafayette. It was from this village that Tecumseh 
came, August 12, 1810, to hold a conference with General Harrison 
at Vincennes. He had a guard of seventy-five warriors (some ac- 
counts say 400) and spent ten days in consultation. The descrip- 
tion in the following selection is from Finley, the speech of Tecum- 
seh is taken from Dillon's History of Indiana, p. 442. 

In August, 1810, Tecumseh descended the Wabash, pro- 
fessedly to hold a council with General Harrison, whose 
headquarters were at Vincennes. He was accompanied by 
four hundred Indian warriors. Captain G. R. Floyd, who, 
at the time, commanded Fort Knox, three miles above Vin- 
cennes, writing under date of August 14, 1810, says : 

"The Shawnee Indians have come ; they passed this gar- 
rison, which is three miles above Vincennes, on Sunday 
night, in eighty canoes ; they were all painted in the most 
terrific manner. They were stopped by me at the garri- 
son^- for a short time. I examined their canoes and found 
them well prepared for war in case of an attack. They were 
headed by the brother of the Prophet — Tecumseh — who, 
perhaps, is one of the finest-looking men I ever saw — about 
six feet high, straight, with large, fine features, and alto- 
gether a daring, bold-looking fellow. 

" The fort or station for troops. 



? ) 



io6 



Readings in Indiana History 



On the next day the council was held. The deeply- 
thrilling incident which occnrred during the council and its 
influence in giving direction to subsequent events possess 
great interest. I therefore subjoin an account of it, as 
given by Benjamin Drake. 

Governor Harrison had made arrangements for holding 
the council on the portico of his own house, which had been 
fitted up with seats for the occasion. Here, on the morning 
of the fifteenth, he awaited the arrival of the chief, being 
attended by the judges of the Supreme Court, some officers 




Government House of Indiana Territory at Vincennes. 

of the army, a sergeant and twelve men from Fort Knox 
and a large number of citizens. At the appointed hour Te- 
cumseli, supported by forty of his principal warriors, made 
his appearance, the remainder of his followers being en- 
camped in the village and its environs. When the chief 
had approached within thirty or forty yards of the house 
he suddenly stopped, as if waiting some advances from the 
Governor. An interpreter was sent, requesting him and his 
followers to take seats on the portico. To this Tecumseh 
objected; he did not think the place a suitable one for hold- 
ing the conference, but preferred that it should take place 



Indian Border Wars 



I07 



in a grove of trees — to which he pointed — standing a short 
distance from the house. The Governor said that he had 
no objections to the grove, except that there were no seats 
in it for their accommodation. Tecnmseh replied that that 
constituted no objection to the grove, the earth being the 






"■i\ 



f x.p%?? 



'i^^'^ 



:±\ 



\ 



i^ 



«^v 







Governor Harrison and Tecum^eh in Couacil at Vincennes in 1810. 



most suitable place to the Indians, who loved to repose upon 
the bosom of their mother. The Governor yielded the point 
and the benches and chairs having been removed to the 
spot, the conference was begun, the Indians being seated 
on the grass. 



io8 Readings in Indiana History 

Tecumseh opened the meeting by stating at length his 
objections to the treaty of Fort Wayne,^^ made by Governor 
Harrison in the previous year; and, in the course of his 
speech, boldly avowed the principle of his party to be that 
of resistance to every cession of land, unless made by all 
the tribes, who, he contended, formed but one nation. He 
admitted that he had threatened to kill the chiefs who 
signed the treaty of Fort Wayne ; and that it was his fixed 
determination not to permit the village chiefs in future to 
manage their affairs, but to place the power with which 
they had been heretofore invested in the hands of the war 
chiefs. The Americans, he said, had driven the Indians 
from the sea coast, and would soon push them into the lakes ; 
and while he disclaimed all intention of making war upon 
the United States, he declared it to be his unalterable reso- 
lution to take a stand and resolutely oppose the further in- 
trusion of the white people upon the Indian lands. He con- 
cluded by making a brief but impassioned recital of the 
various wrongs and aggressions inflicted by the white men 
upon the Indians from the commencement of the revolu- 
tionary war down to the period of that council, all of which 
was calculated to arouse and inflame the minds of such of 
his followers as were present. 

The Governor rose in reply, and in examining the right 
of Tecumseh and his party to make objections to the treaty 
of Fort Wayne, took occasion to say that the Indians were 
not one nation, having a common property in the lands. The 
Miamis, he contended, were the real owners of the tract 
on the Wabash ceded by the late treaty, and the Shawnees 
had no right to interfere in the case; he furthei- declared 
that, upon the arrival of the whites on this continent they 
had found the Miamis in possession of this land, the Shaw- 
nees being then residents of Georgia, from which they had 
been driven by the Creeks, and that it was ridiculous to 
assert that the red men constituted but one nation. For, 
if such had been the intention of the Great Spirit, he would 

*3 Treaty of Fort Wajnp, mad" by Governor Harrison with the chiefs of the 
Miami, Delaware and Pottawattomie tribes (but not including the Shawnee chiefs), 
Sept. 30, 1809, whereby a large region above the Vincennes tract was ceded. 



Indian Border Wars 109 

not have put different tongues in their heads, but have 
taught them all to speak the same language. 

The Governor having taken his seat, the interpreter 
commenced explaining the speech to Tecuniseh, who, after 
listening to a portion of it, sprang to his feet and began to 
speak with great vehemence of manner. 

The Governor was surprised at his violent gestures, but 
as he did not understand him, thought he was making some 
explanation, and suffered his attention to be drawn toward 
Winnamac, a friendly Indian lying on the grass before him, 
who was renewing the priming of his pistol, which he kept 
concealed from the other Indians, but in full view of the 
Governor. His attention, however, was again directed to 
Tecumseh by hearing General Gibson, who was intimately 
acquainted with the Shawnee language, say to Lieutenant 
Jennings, ''Those fellows intend mischief; you had better 
bring up the guard." At that moment the followers of 
Tecumseh seized their tomahawks and war clubs and sprang 
on their feet, their eyes turned on the Governor. 

As soon as he could disengage himself from the armed 
chair in which he sat, he rose, drew a small sword which he 
had by his side and stood on the defensive. Captain Floyd, 
of the army, who stood near him, drew a dirk, and the chief, 
Winnamac, cocked his pistol. The citizens present were 
more numerous than the Indians, but were unarmed; some 
of them procured clubs and brickbats, and also stood on 
the defensive. The Rev. Mr. Winans, of the Methodist 
Church, ran to the Governor's house, obtained a gun, and 
posted himself at the door to defend the family. During 
this singular scene no one spoke until the guard came run- 
ning up and were in the act of firing, when the Governor 
ordered them not to do so. He then demanded of the inter- 
preter an explanation of what had happened. He replied 
that Tecumseh had interrupted him, declaring that all the 
Governor had said was false; and that he and the Seventeen 
Fires'** had cheated and imposed upon the Indians. 

The Governor then told Tecumseh that he was a bad man 
and that he would hold no further communication with him ; 

" Seventeen Fires, the seventeen states of the Union. 



no Readings in Indiana History 

that as lie liad come to Vincennes under tlie protection of a 
council-fire, lie might return in safety, but that he must im- 
mediately leave the village. Here the council terminated. 
During the night two companies of militia were brought 
in from the country, and that belonging to the town was also 
embodied.^^ Next morning Tecumseh requested the Gov- 
ernor to afford him an opportunity of explaining his con- 
duct of the previous day, declaring that he did not intend 
to attack the Governor, and that he had acted under the ad- 
vice of some of the white people. The Governor consented 
to another interview, it being understood that each party 
should have the same armed force as on the previous day. 
On this occasion the deportment of Tecumseh was respect- 
ful and dignified. He again denied having had any inten- 
tion of making an attack upon the Governor, and declared 
that he had been stimulated to the course he had taken by 
two white men, who assured him that one-half the citizens 
were opposed to the Governor and willing to restore the 
land in question ; that the Governor would soon be put out 
of office, and a good man sent to fill his place, who would 
give up the land to the Indians. When asked by the Gov- 
ernor wdiether he intended to resist the survey of these 
lands,^" Tecumseh replied that he and his followers were 
resolutely determined to insist upon the old boundary. 
When he had taken his seat, chiefs from the Wyandots, 
Kickapoos, Pottawattomies, Ottaw^as, and AVinnebagoes 
spoke in succession, and distinctly avowed that they had en- 
tered into the Shawnee confederacy, and were determined 
to support the principles laid down by their leader. The 
Governor, in conclusion, stated that he would make known 
to the President the claims of Tecumseh and his party to 
the land in question ; but that he was satisfied that the gov- 
ernment would never admit that the lands on the Wabash 
were the property of any other tribes than those who occu- 
pied them when the white people first arrived in America ; 
and, as the title to these lands had been derived by purchase 
from the tribes, he might rest assured that the right of the 

^^ Embodied, included: made part of the armed force. 
■'"Those ceded by the treaty of Fort Wayne. 



Indian Border Wars in 

United States would be sustained by the sword. Here the 
council adjourned. 

The following is a part of Tecumseh's speech, as reported by 
Harrison 's interpreter : 

Brother — Since the peace (of Greenville, in 1795), was 
made, you have killed some of the Shawnees, Winnebagoes, 
Delawares and Miamis ; and you have taken our lands from 
us ; and I do not see how we can remain at peace with you, 
if you continue to do so. You try to force the red people to 
do some injury. It is you that are pushing them on to do 
mischief. 

Brother — I was glad to hear your speech. You said 
that if we could show that the land was sold l^y the people 
that had no right to sell, you would restore it. Those that 
did sell, did not own it. It was me. Those tribes set up a 
claim; but the tribes with me will not agree to their claim. 
If the land is not restored to us, you will see, when we 
return to our homes, how it will be settled. We shall have 
a great council, at which all of the tribes will be present, 
when we shall show to those who sold, that they had no 
right to the claim that they set up; and we will see what 
will be done with those chiefs that did sell the land to 
you. 

Brother — I wish you would take pity on the red people, 
and do what I have requested. If you will not give up the 
land, and cross the ]>oundary of your present settlement, 
it will be very hard, and produce great troubles among us. 
How can we have confidence in the white people! When 
Jesus Christ came upon the earth, you killed him, and nailed 
him on a cross. You thought he was dead; but you were 
mistaken. 

34. The Tippecanoe Canipaijfii: The March 

(From IwUana iMar/asine of IUf<iorii, II, PP. ITO-ISO; account by John 

TirTON [1811].) 

As soon as tlie council at Vincennes was over, Tecumseh with 
twenty warriors got in their canoes and paddled off down the 
Wabash on their way to the Creeks and Cherokees of the South. It 



112 Readings in Indiana History 

was his hope to unite all the tribes of the West in one vast army to 
attack the invading whites. The Prophet, Tecumseh's brother, 
gathered the warlike tribesmen of the Northwest to his village at 
the mouth of Eel river. Indian depredations began all along the 
Indiana frontier. The inhabitants of Vincennes held a mass meet- 
ing and petitioned Governor Harrison to lead them against the 
Indians. Harrison called for a regiment of United States regulars. 
With these came many renowned Indian fighters from Kentucky. 
The militia of Indiana Territory to the number of about 600 were 
called out. With this army, numbering in all about 910, General 
Harrison set out from Vincennes, September 26, 1811. Here let 
John Tipton take up the story. We will let him tell it exactly as 
he wrote it from day to day in his journal, preserving his quaint 
spelling and lack of punctuation. 

Thursday 26th (of September) we moved after Breck- 
fast into town (Vincennes) and our Capt. treated and 
also a tavern^' keeper. We crosst the W^abash and fired 
two Platoons, and then went np to Capt. Jnbaus (Dubois) 
and fired again and too (took?) Dinner, much whisky 
drank whicli caused quarreling, moved again thro a Prairie 
six miles wide and campd and Drawd corn and potatoes, 
our Pilot left us and went home, we lay ten miles from 
town. 

Friday the 27th we marched at 12 o'clock through a 
Small Prairie, went four miles and campd. I went to hunt 
and killed two squirrels and a hawk. 

Saturday 28tli it Began to Rain at Day Brake ; myself 
and two others went to hunt and staid out till two o'clock 
came to camp and found that tlie men had left us we took 
their trail found two men waiting with our horses and took 
as we rode we passed through good land, a Beautiful Prairie 
Seven miles wide called Demot and a Creek of the same 
name overtook the company after sixteen miles just as 
they had stopt we also Passt a blockhouse in the Prairie. 

Sunday 29th we moved at ten stopt at a house bought 
a horse for our footman, too seargeants that had been 
sent to stock^^ a gun that got broke on the 26th came up. 
we went 6 miles Part Prairie and Part Barrens crosst Birch 



*'' The "taverns" were the inns or hotels of the day. See below, selection 72. 
** "Stock a gun" is to supply or repair a broken stock. 



Indian Border Wars 113 

Creek, came to the River and camped near a Prairie and 
some men went to hunt and found three Bee trees^^ in an 
hour. Spent the evening in cutting them got nine or ten 
gallons of honey. I stood guard, the Boat we were to 
guard came up. we drawd whisky and salt^° and they went 
on. our men went fishing and caught two fish. 

Monday the 30th we moved after Breckfast through 
good land Passt a good spring and the Creek St. Mary, 
and through a beautiful Prairie four miles long and two 
Broad with a cabin in it. frost this day in the prairie, 
went to the river at an oald Camp. Passt a handsome 
Barren, then went up and crosst a muddy Creek where 
one of our horses mired, we went through a rich bottom to 
the place of meeting the army. They were gone but left 
a Boat for us. we found a Bee tree as we marcht three 
Deer ran along the Line a number of guns were fired and 
one was killed Stopt in the evening went to hunt found 
two Bee trees Campt on the River near a Prairie with the 
boat after coming ten miles. 

tuesday October the first we were alarmed by the sen- 
tinel firing his gun he said at an Indian, but we soon 
found to the contrary we moved through a Prairie 3 miles 
and I went to hunt rode all Day through a good bottom 
land to the Companey at twelve and then went on ; the men 
foimd a Bee tree while marching and two at noon cut one 
down and left the rest. I himted till night. Crosst two 
beautiful Creeks killed two Pigeons one of our horses sick 
and left by the way. we went 19 miles and camped with 
the boat; we passt a Prairie on the other side Drawd 
whisky and flour but no corn Since 29th of last mo. 

Wed the 2d we moved early and through a Rich bottom 
all day I went to hunt kild a Pheasant we found two 
bee trees as we marclid but could not cut them we came 
up with the Boat fast on the Bar and went to help them 
off here we crosst the River and campt after Coming 16 
miles one of our men had ague yesterday. 

Thursday 3d marched at 9 four of our horses miss- 

40 "Bee trees," partly hollow trees filled with wild honey stored by bees. 

=<" "Drawd whisky," etc., means drew articles from the commissary's store. 

8—1643 



114 Readings in Indiana History 

ing three men left to liunt them marchd one mile came 
to Terre Haute an old Indian village on the East side of 
Wabash on high land near a Large Prairie Peach and ap- 
ples growing the huts torn down by the army that campd 
here on the 2d two miles further we came up with the army, 
horses foimd. Campd on the river on beautiful high ground 
to build a garrison.^^ 

Monday the 7th we moved early three miles and crosst 
Raccoon Creek to the Purchase'^- line thence 15 miles to 
the garrison, found Capt. Heath's men Dismisst and him 
sick and Captain Berry at home too. our company lay on 
the River aliove the garrison. The men on the Last Rout 
Draw Corn which caused murmuring. Some men want to 
go home. 

tuesday 8th I staid in camp we were on Parade at 
twelve treated by Lieutenant McMahan and mustered and 
had a sham fight. Dismisst in order Drawd whisky for 
the time we had been out the men all throwd in their 
hats and wrestled. Some men were sent to the cornfield to 
Pull Corn. 

Wednesday the 9tli I staid in Camp Cut out a gun-"*^ 
and went to shooting, a lieutenant and 20 men were 
ordered to Scout.^^ we covered our camp with grass it 
Rained hard at two the Scouting Party came in took Din- 
ner went out again it Rained again hard at sunset. 

thursday 10 we had a wet night I cut out a gun 
and went over the river and got Powder, a seargeant and 
ten men were sent out to scout along the lines, we were 
alarmed at 8 by the sentinel being shot and badly wounded 
we were ordered to arms. An officer was sent from our 
Part of the Camp to know the (cause of the) alarm. Gen- 
eral orders were for all to get their horses, a guard was 
to be left at our Camp. I was set out to post till the horses 
were found, we then left our camp and joined the line. 
Stood to arms all night till Brake of Day. 

-'i "Garrison," a fort or defondod station for troops. Anto p. lo;^. 
5s "Purrli-iso line" is tho lino bounciinc;' tlio land imrcliasod frmu the Indiana 
by the Fort Wayne Treaty. 

■''•' "Cut a gun" is to bore out the barrel fresh after Ions use. 
54 tq "scout," to go on duty as a scout. 



Indian Border Wars 115 

friday 11 mounted and went to the Prairie in Company 
with the light horse to h)ok for indians. we took up the 
river crosst a creek went through a Prairie then crosst the 
same creek again let our horses feed half an hour and after 
traveling 15 miles came to camp at tw^elve then Drawd flour 
whisky and Pickled pork got breakfast at four in the 
evening five of the Delaware indians came and took pro- 
tection. Very high wind a tree fell close to camp while 
writing and a gun was heard at the general Camp also 
the Drum beat, a strong guard set out. 

Saturday 12th we were paraded at Day Brake went 
to the Prairie a seargeant and two men were sent to stay. 
I was one. We could find no sign came to the camp in 
our route we found two of the Delaware chiefs they had 
come to Camp the day before to join us we brought them 
to Camp one spoke good English Played cards with our 
men and informed us that thirty of his young men were 
coming to join us. I cut a gun and went to shooting. 

Sunday the 13th fine day I stocked a gun at dark 
we heard a gun fire at the general Camp but a thing so 
often repeated could not alarm us anymore, yesterday we 
drawd corn beef whisky and flour, soap and candles to-day 
salt also this day the Governor sends for more men. 

Saturday the 19 — MusterecF"'"' as usual. Came to Camp 
Drawd Beef, Salt, whisky and flour then was paraded 
while the Governor informed us that our ration was reduced 
to f of a pound of flour (?) of the contractor failing. He 
also told us that we should have to fight the indians. it 
Began to Rain, we were Dismisst, It rained hard till 
sunset, our men that went out to hunt the lost horses camo 
in had not found them. I turned out my mare this morn- 
ing went to hunt her killed a turkey it stopt Raining and 
Began to Snow and Blow hard our Camps'"*" smoked it was 
the Disagreealilest night I ever saw the men who went 
to the corn field Lost Captain Spencer's mare. 

Sunday 20th a very cold cloudy day the ground covered 
with Snow we did not muster as usual. Captain Spen- 

55 To "imuster" is to "pai-ade." 
'-" "Camps," tents. 



ii6 Readings in Indiana History 

cer's mare came to camp an Ensigii and thirteen men 
went to hunt the horses that were lost on the 18th we went 
through the Prairie. Came to an Indian Camp then we 
parted into three Companies and our Company went up 
to the Creek 4 miles and camped at an old indian Camp 
this morning our Captain and Seargeant quarrelled but 
soon dropt. this night very cold. 

monday 21st the morning clear and cold six of us went 
to hunt two of our men and an indian killed a deer I 
wounded a deer we supt last night on a bit of bread about 
as big as a man's two fingers and this morning on venison 
without bread we then went to hunt the horses. Came 
to where fifty Indians were campd. Lost one of our men. 
Came to Camp found that our hunters had killed two Deer 
and our 2d Lieutenant had resigned and gone home. 

Sunday the 27tli a fine clear warm day mustered as 
usual marched up the Prairie then into the woods had a 
sham battle thence to Camp. I staid in Camp the men 
went to the Prairie to run their horses the garrison 
Christened and Extra whisky issued. 

Monday the 28 a fine day mustered as usual found the 
Prairie burnt over with fire. Came to Camp. Cut out a 
gun and went to talk with the Indians then came to my tent 
was ordered to parade the Company to see a man whipt.^' 
We were drawd in a hollow square, three guns got up the 
man brought in ordered to be stript then pardoned. We 
came to Camp received money for back ration this day 
came up on Major Bob with a Company of mounted Rifle- 
men three boats and two pirogues'"^** with corn flour and 
arms and ammunition, the above talk was with the miami 
Chiefs, orders to march tomorrow, this day I got one 
gallon of whisky. 

tuesday 29 we mustered as usual. Came to Camp, was 
ordered to march in 30 minutes 20 men commanded by 
Captain Berry went to guard the Boats that Carried our 
Provision and a Seargeant with 8 men to guard the Gov- 
ernor, we moved to the Prairie and stopt till the Baggage 

^' A mwde of discipliniug a disobodient soldier. 

58 "Pirogues," canoes made by hollowing out logs ; dugouts. See pettiauger in 
selection above. 



Indian Border Wars 117 



y 



all Came up. I sent Back for whisky, we then moved off 
with the whole army Consisting of 640 foot about 270 
mounted men 19 wagons and one Cart. Passt one Creek 
and Camped after 5 miles on the same Creek where we 
Camped on the 4th Inst, made us move Clos to the 
army one horse killed and a wagon Broke by falling a tree 
a guard set out of our Company. 

thursday the 31st we moved early two of the oxen 
missing three of our men sent to hunt them we crosst 
Raccoon Creek saw our men that went to guard the Boats 
on the 29th they left us we Came to the River where we 
Camped on our Return from Vermilion on the night of the 
6 thence up to the ford. Saw our above mentioned boat 
guard crossing the River we halted until the army came 
up then Rode the river which was very Deep and then 
Camped our Boat guard and the men that went to hunt 
for the oxen Came up when we left the guards we took a 
north course up the East side of the Wabash and Crossed to 
the West with orders to kill all the Indians we saw. fine 
news. The Governor's wagon being left this morning in 
consequence of the oxen being lost came up and all of the 
army crosst in 3 hours we drawd Corn. 

Friday the first of November. I was sent with 18 men 
to Look for a way for the army to Cross the Little Vermi- 
lion, marched at Day Brake came to Creek found and 
marked the road, waited till the army came up went on 
and Camped on the River two miles Below the Big Vermi- 
lion. Captain Spencer myself and three others went up the 
Big Vermilion. Returned to camp General Wells with 
forty men had come up and Captain Berry with nine men 
had come up. our company marchd in front today as usual 
which now consisted of 87 men in consequence of Captain 
Lindley being attached to it. 

Saturday the 2d a fine day Captain Spencer with ten 
men went out on a Scout, our Company not Parading as 
usual the governor threatened to brake (?) the officers. I 
staid in Camp the army staid here to build a block house 
on the Bank of the Wabash three miles below Vermilion in 
a small Prairie the house 25 feet square and a breast work 



ii8 Readings in Indiana History 

from each corner next the River down to the water. Took 
horses and Drawd Brush over the Prairie to Break down 
the weeds, this evening a man came from the garrison 
said last night hife boat was fired on one man that (was) 
asleep killed Dead, three boats Came up and unloaded 
went back took a sick man with them. One of Captain 
Rob's men died tonight. Captain Spencer Came in Late 
tonight. 

Sunday the 3d. a cloudy day we moved Early, our 
Company marched on the Right wing today. Crosst the 
Big Vermilion through a Prairie six miles 3 miles through 
timber then through a wet Prairie with groves of timber 
in it. after 18 miles we camped in Rich grove of timber in 
the Prairie. Captain Spencer very sick today at ten o 'clock 
tonight the aid Came to Camjj ordered a subaltern and ten 
men to Parade at the Governor's tent at 4 in the morning. 
I was ordered out and my Company made up. a gun fired 
while I am writing at 11 o 'clock, 

monday the 4tli I went out with my scouts. Joined by 
Captain Prince went 18 miles through a prairie. Came 
to Pine Creek a fine Large Creek then turned back the day 
Being Cold Cloudy and windy. Began to rain at 11. we 
stopt to make fire But the army Came and we had to Leave 
it. we crosst Pine Creek and Camp two guns fired at 8. 
Continued rain at intervals. I had one quart of whisky 
yesterday and one to Day of the Contractors. 

tuesday the 5 Cloudy day we moved early a Lieuten- 
ant and 5 men sent to Scout. Came to the army no sign 
was seen we went 6 miles through the timber then Prairie 
with groves of timber and a number of small lakes in it — an 
alarm made. I was sent out with 17 men to scout saw 
nothing a deer and a wolf killed in the line, camped on a 
Small Branch after 18 miles, the guns fired last night 
wounded a horse. 

Wednesday the 6 a very cold day. we moved early 
a scout sent out they Came back had seen Indian signs, 
we marched as usual till 12 our spies caught four horses 
and saw some Indians, found we were near the Celebrated 
Prophet's town. Stopt in a prairie the foot throwd all of 



Indian Border Wars 119 

their knapsacks in the wagons, we formed in order for 
Battle' — marched 2 miles then formed the line of Battle 
we marched in 5 lines on the extreme Right, went into a 
Cornfield then np to the above town and surrounded it 
they met us Pled for Peace they said they would give 
us satisfaction in the morning. All the time we were there 
they were hallowing. This town is on the west side of 
the Wabash — miles above Vincennes on the Second Bank.^^ 
neat built about 2 hundred yards from the river. This is 
the main town, but it is scattering a mile long all the way 
a fine Cornfield, after the above movement we moved one 
mile further up. Campd in timber between a Creek and 
Prairie after Crossing a fine Creek and marching 11 miles. 

35. The Battle of Tippecanoe 

(From Iniliana Maoasinc of Ilistorii. 11, pp. 16.3-107; account by Isaac 

Naylor [date uukiiowu].) 

Juds^e Naylor was born in Vir(]jinia in 1790. As a boy he lived 
in Kentucky ; as a young man he lived in Clark County, Indiana, 
taking part in pursuit of the Indians who murdered the settlers at 
the Pigeon Roost ; as a judge he rode the Circuit. He spent the last 
forty years of his life at Crawfordsville, much of the time as editor 
of the Journal of that city. He took part in the Tippecanoe cam- 
paign and has left us the following account: 

I became a volunteer member of a company of rifle- 
men, and on the 12th of September, 1811, we commenced 
our march toward Vincennes,"*' and arrived there in about 
six days, marching about 120 miles. We remained there 
about a week and took up the inarch to a point on Wabash 
river sixty miles above, on the east bank of the river, 
where we erected a stockade'"'^ fort, which we named Fort 
Harrison. This was three miles above where the city of 
Terre Haute now stands. Colonel Joseph H. Davies, who 
commanded the dragoons, named the fort. The glorious 
defense of this fort"- nine months after by Zachary Taylor 

•'■''' "So court r.ank," i. c, scoonrt I>ottoiii, noxl bottom iiic'lior Ihnii llio nno iimiir 
dialcly al)ove tlio water's ortijo 

'■"Starting from liis lionic near ("liarli'^t(.\vii Clark County. 

'■' A stockade was linilt of lo^s set iiprislit in tlao ground. , ' 

'•- See below, selection ."■(;. 



I20 Readings in Indiana History 

was the first step in his brilliant career that afterwards 
made him president of the United States. A few days 
later we took up the march again for the seat of Indian 
warfare, where we arrived on the evening of November 6, 
1811. 

When the army arrived in view of the Prophet's town, 
an Indian was seen coming toward General Harrison with 
a white flag suspended on a pole. Here the army halted, 
and a parley was had between General Harrison and an 
Indian delegation, who assured the General that they de- 
sired peace, and solemnly promised to meet him next day 
in council, to settle the terms of peace and friendship be- 
tween them and the United States. 

General Marston G. Clai'k, who was then brigade major, 
and Waller Taylor, one of the judges of the General Court 
of the Territory of Indiana, and afterward a senator of 
the United States from Indiana (one of the General's 
aides), were ordered to select a place for the encampment, 
which they did. The army then marched to the ground 
selected about sunset. A strong guard was placed around 
the encampment, commanded by Captain James Bigger 
and three lieutenants. The troops were ordered to sleep 
on their arms. The night being cold, large fires were made 
along the lines of encampment and each soldier was re- 
quired to rest, sleeping on his arms. 

Having seen a number of squaws and children at the 
town, I thought the Indians were not disposed to fight. 
About ten o'clock at night Joseph Warnock and myself 
retired to rest, he taking one side of the fire and I the 
other, the other members of our company being asleep. 
My friend Warnock had dreamed, the night before, a bad 
dream which foreboded something fatal to him or to some 
of his family, as he told me. Having myself no confidence 
in dreams, I thought but little about the matter, although 
I observed that he never smiled afterwards. 

I awoke about four o'clock the next morning, after a 
sound and refreshing sleep, having heard in a dream the 
firing of guns and the whisthng of bullets just before I 



Indian Border Wars 121 

awoke from my slumber. A drizzling rain was falling and 
all things were still and quiet throngliout the camp. I was 
engaged in making a calculation as to when I should arrive 
at home. 

In a few moments I heard the crack of a rifle in the 
direction of the point wdiere now stands the Battle Ground 
house, which is occupied by Captain DuTiel as a tavern. I 
had just time to think that some sentinel was alarmed and 
had fired his rifle without a real cause, when I heard the 
crack of another rifle, followed by an awful Indian yell all 
around the encampment. In less than a minute I saw the 
Indians charging our line most furiously and shooting a 
great many rifle balls into our camp-fires, throwing the 
live coals into the air three or four feet high. 

At this moment my friend Warnock was shot by a rifle 
ball through his body. He ran a few yards and fell dead 
on the ground. Our lines were broken and a few Indians 
were found on the inside of the encampment. In a few 
moments they were all killed. Our lines closed up with 
our men in their proper places. One Indian was killed in 
the back part of Captain Geiger's tent, while he was at- 
tempting to tomahawk the Captain. 

The sentinels, closely pursued by the Indians, came to 
the lines of the encampment in haste and confusion. My 
brother, William Naylor, was on guard. He was pursued 
so rapidly and furiously that he ran to the nearest point 
on the left flank, where he remained with a company of 
regular soldiers until the battle was near its termination. 
A young man, whose name was Daniel Pettit, was pursued 
so closely and furiously by an Indian as he was running 
from the guard fire to our lines, that to save his life he 
cocked his rifle as he ran and turning suddenly round 
placed the muzzle of his gun against the body of the Indian 
and shot an ounce ball through him. The Indian fired his 
gun at the same instant, but it being longer than Pettit 's 
the muzzle passed by him and set fire to a handkerchief 
which he had tied round his head. The Indians made four 
or five more fierce charges on our lines, yelling and scream- 



122 Readings in Indiana History 

ing as they advanced, shooting balls and arrows into our 
ranks. At each charge they were driven back in confusion, 
carrying off their dead and wounded as they retreated. 

Colonel Owen, of Shelby County, Kentucky, one of 
General Harrison's volunteer aides, fell early in action by 
the side of the General. He was a member of the legisla- 
ture at the time of his death. Colonel Davies was mort- 
ally wounded early in the battle, gallantly charging the 
Indians on foot with his sword and pistols, according to 
his own request. He made this request three times of 
General Harrison, before he was permitted to make the 
charge. This charge was made by himself and eight 
dragoons on foot near the angle formed by the left flank 
and the front line of the encampment. Colonel Davies lived 
about thirty-six hours after he was wounded, manifesting 
his ruling passion of life — ambition, patriotism and an 
ardent love of military glory. During the last hours of his 
life he said to his friends aromid him that he had but one 
thing to regret — that he had military talents; that he was 
about to be cut down in the meridian of life without having 
an opportunity of displaying them for his own honor, and 
the good of his country. He was buried alone with the 
honors of war near the right flank of the army, inside the 
lines of the encampment, between two trees. On one of 
these trees the letter " D " is now visible. Nothing but the 
stump of the other remains. His grave was made here to 
conceal it from the Indians. It was tilled up to the top 
with earth, then covered with oak leaves. I presume the 
Indians never found it. This precautionary act was per- 
formed as a mark of peculiar respect for a distinguished 
hero and patriot of Kentucky. 

Captain Spencer's company of mounted riflemen com- 
posed the right flank of the army. Captain Spencer and 
both his lieutenants were killed. John Tipton was elected 
and commissioned as Captain of this company one hour 
after the liattle, as a reward for his cool and deliberate 
heroism displayed during the action. He died in Logans- 
port in 1839, having been twice elected Senator of the 
United States from the State of Indiana. 



Indian Border Wars 123 

The clear, calm voice of General Harrison was heard 
in words of heroism in every part of the encampment dur- 
ing the action. Colonel Boyd behaved very bravely after 
repeating these words : ' ' Huzza ! My sons of gold, a few 
more fires and victory will be ours ! ' ' 

Just after daylight the Indians retreated across the 
prairie toward their town, carrying otf their wounded. 
This retreat was from the right flank of the encampment, 
commanded by Captains Spencer and Robb, they having 
retreated from the other portions of the encampment a few 
minutes before. As their retreat became visible, an almost 
deafening and universal shout was raised by our men. 
' ' Hu^za ! Huzza ! Huzza ! ' ' This shout was almost equal to 
that of the savages at the commencement of the battle; 
ours was the shout of victory, theirs was the shout of 
ferocious but disappointed hope. 

The morning light disclosed the fact that the killed and 
wounded of our army, numbering between eight and nine 
hundred men, amounted to one hundred and eight. Thirt.y- 
six Indians were found near our lines. Many of their 
dead were carried off during the battle. This fact was 
proved by the discovery of mau}^ Indian graves recently 
made near their town. Ours was a bloody victory, theirs 
a bloody defeat. 

36. The War of 1812: Fort Harrison 

(From Nilcs' Hcgisicr, III, iip. 00-01; aecoiuit by Captain Zachaky Taylor 

[1812].) 

As soon as England declared war, the English agents in the 
Northwest began to organize the Indians. Their plan was to arm 
and feed the Indian armies and send them, under British officers, 
against the Americans. Attacks were to be. made at the same time 
all along the Indiana frontier. The three strongest posts on the 
frontier were Fort Harrison, Fort Wayne, and Vallonia. Against 
these the chief attacks were aimed. Fort Harrison had been built 
by General Harrison wliile on the Tippecanoe campaign in 1811. 
It was left in charge of Captain Taylor whose official report to Gen- 
eral Harrison dated at the fort, September 10, 1812, follows : 



124 Readings in Indiana History 

Fort Harrison, Sept. 10, (1812). 

Dear Sir — On Thursday evening the 3rd instant, after 
retreat beating,"^ four guns were heard to fire in the direc- 
tion where two young men (citizens who resided here) 
were making hay, about 400 yards distant from the fort. I 
was immediately impressed with an idea that they were 
killed by the Indians, as the Miamis or Weas had that day 
informed me that the Prophet 's party*^^ would soon be here 
for the purpose of commencing hostilities ; and that they 
had been directed to leave this place, which we were about 
to do. I did not think it prudent to send out at that late 
hour of the night to see what had become of them; and 
their failure to come in convinced me that I was right in 
my conjecture. I waited until eight o'clock the next 
morning, when I sent out a corporal with a small party 
to find them, if it could be done without running too mucli 
risk of being drawn into another ambuscade. He soon sent 
back to inform me, that he had found them both killed, and 
wished to know my further orders. I sent the cart and 
oxen, and had them brought in and buried. They had 
[each] been shot with two balls, scalped and cut in the most ' 
shocking manner. 

Late in the evening of the 4tli inst. old Joseph Lenar, 
and between 30 and 40 Indians, arrived from the Prophet's 
Town, with a white flag. Among them were about ten 
women. The men were chiefs of the different tribes that 
compose the Prophet's party. 

A Shawnee man, who spoke good English, informed me 
that old Lenar intended to speak to me the next morning, 
and try to get something to eat. At retreat beating I ex- 
amined the men's arms, and found them all in good order, 
and completed their cartridges to sixteen rounds per man. 
As I had not been able to mount a guard of more than six 
privates and two non-commissioned officers, for some time 
past, and sometimes part of them every other day, from 
the ill health of the company, I had not conceived my force 

"3 "Retreat beating" is the signal, by beat of drum, at sunset, for retiring from 
parade or drill. 

"^ Propliet, brother of Tecumseh, of the Shawnee nation. 



Indian Border Wars 125 

adequate to the defense of this post, should it be vigorously 
attacked, for some time past. As I had just recovered 
from a very severe attack of fever, I was not able to be up 
much through the night. After tattoo,"^ I cautioned the 
guard to be vigilant, and ordered one of the non-commis- 
sioned officers, as the sentinels could not see every part 
of the garrison, to walk around on the inside during the 
whole night, to prevent the Indians from taking advantage 
of us, providing they had any intention of attacking us. 

About 11 o'clock I was awakened by the firing of one 
of the sentinels. I sprang up, ran out, and ordered the 
men to their posts. Just then my orderly sergeant (who 
had charge of the upper block-house) called out that the 
Indians had fired the lower block-house (this contained the 
property of the contractor, which was deposited in the 
lower part, the upper having been assigned to a corporal 
and ten privates, as an alarm post). The guns had begun 
to fire pretty smartly from both sides. I directed the 
buckets to be got ready and water brought from the well, 
and the fire extinguished immediately, as it was 
perceivable at that time. But from debility or some 
other cause, the men were very slow in executing 
my orders — the word ' ' fire ' ' appeared to throw the 
whole of them into confusion. By the time they 
had got the water and broken open the door, the fire 
had unfortmiately communicated to a quantity of whisky 
(the stock having licked several holes through the lower 
part of the building, in order to get at the salt that was 
stored there; through these holes the Indians had intro- 
duced the fire without being discovered, as the night was 
very dark) and in spite of every exertion we could make, 
in less than a moment it ascended to the roof and baffled 
every effort we could make to extinguish it. As the lower 
block-house joined the barracks that make part of the forti- 
fications, most of the men immediately gave themselves up 
for lost, and I had the greatest difficulty in getting my 
orders executed. And, sir, what from the raging of the 
fire — the yelling and howling of several hundred Indians 

"^ Tattoo, the signal by drum beat for retiring to quarters for sleep. 



126 Readings in Indiana History 

— the cries of nine women and children (part soldiers' and 
part citizens' wives, who had taken shelter in the fort) — 
and the desponding of so many of the men, which was 
worse than all — I can assure you that my feelings were 
very unpleasant^and, indeed, there were not more than 
ten or fifteen men able to do a great deal, the others being 
either sick or convalescent — and, to add to our other mis- 
fortunes, two of the stoutest men in the fort, whom I had 
every confidence in, jumped the picket, and left us. 

But my presence of mind did not for a moment forsake 
me. I saw, by throwing off part of the roof that joined 
the block-house that was on fire, and keeping the end per- 
fectly wet, the whole row of buildings might be saved, 
and leave only an entrance of only 18 or 20 feet for the 
Indians to enter after the house was consumed; and that 
a temporary breast-w^ork might be erected to prevent their 
entering even there. I convinced the men that this could 
be accomplished and it appeared to inspire them with new 
life. Never did men act with more firmness or desperation. 
Those who were al)le (while the others kepi up a constant 
fire from the other block-house and the two bastions) 
mounted the roofs of the houses, with Dr. Clark at their 
head (who acted with the greatest firmness and presence 
of mind the whole time the attack lasted, which was 7 
hours), under a shower of bullets, and in less than a mo- 
ment threw^ off as much of the roof as was necessary. This 
was done with only the loss of -one man and two wounded. 
The man who was killed was a little deranged, and did not 
get off of the house as soon as directed, or he would not 
have been hurt. 

Although the barracks were several times in a blaze, 
and an immense quantity of fire directed against them, the 
men used such exertion that they kept it under and before 
day raised a temporary breast- work as high as a man's 
head. The Indians continued to pour in a heavy fire of 
ball and an innumerable quantity of arrows during the 
whole time the attack lasted, in every jjart of the barracks. 
I had but one other man killed, and he lost his life by being 



Indian Border Wars 127 

too anxious. He got into one of the galleries in the bastion, 
and fired over the pickets, and called out to his comrades 
that he had killed an Indian, and neglecting to stoop down 
in an instant he was shot dead. One of the men who 
jumped the pickets, returned an hour before day, and 
running up toward the gate, begged for God's sake for it 
to be opened. I suspected it to be a stratagem of the 
Indians to get in, as I did not recognize the voice. I directed 
the men in the bastion, where I happened to be, to shoot 
him let him be whom he would, and one of them fired at 
him, but fortunately he ran up to the other bastion, where 
they knew his voice, and Dr. Clark directed him to lie down 
close to the pickets behind an empty barrel that happened 
to be there. At daylight I had him let in. His arm was 
broken in a most shocking manner. This he said was done 
l)y the Indians and I suppose was the cause of his return- 
ing. I think it pro])al)le that he will not recover. The 
other, they caught al)Out 130 yards from the garrison, and 
cut him all to pieces. 

After keeping up a constant fire (which we began to 
return with some effect after daylight) until about six 
o'clock the next morning, they removed out of the reach 
of our guns. A party of them drove up the horses which 
belonged to the citizens here, and as they could not catch 
them very readily, shot the whole of them in our sight, as 
well as a number of the hogs. They drove off the whole 
of the cattle, which amounted to 65 head, as well as the 
pul)lic oxen. I had tlie breach (which was made by the 
burning of the block-house) filled up before night, with a 
strong row of pickets, which I ol>tained by pulling down 
the guard house. We lost the whole of our provisions, but 
must make out to live on green corn until we can get a 
supply. I am in hopes this will not be long. I believe the 
whole Miamis or Weas were among the Prophet's party, 
as one chief gave his orders in that language. His voice 
resembled Stone Eater's, and I believe Crooked Legs was 
there likewise. A Frenchman here understands their dif- 
ferent languages, and several of the Miamis or Weas, that 



128 Readings in Indiana History 

have been frequently here, were next morning reco^iized 
by him and the soldiers. The Indians suffered smartly, but 
were so numerous as to take off all that were shot. They 
continued with us until the next morning, but made no 
further attempt upon the fort, nor have we seen anything 
more of them since. I have delayed informing you of my 
situation, as I did not like to weaken the garrison. I looked 
for some person from Vincennes ; none of my men was 
acquainted with the woods; therefore I would either have 
to take the road or river, which I was fearful was guarded 
by small parties of Indians that would not dare attack a 
company of rangers that was on a scout. But, being dis- 
appointed, I have at length determined to send a couple of 
my men by water, and am in hopes that they will arrive 
safely. I think it would be best to send the provisions 
under a pretty strong escort, as the Indians may attempt 
to prevent their coming. If you carry on an expedition 
against the Prophet this fall, you ought to be well provided 
with everything, as you may calculate on having every inch 
of the ground disputed between here and there that they 
can defend with advantage. 

Wishing, etc., Z. Tayloe. 

(To) His excellency Governor Harrison. 

37. The War of 1812: Pigeon Roost Massacre 

(From A History of Tndiana, by John Dillon [1858], pp. 492-494.) 

A great deal of mystery surrounds this massacre. According to 
the British-Indian plan of the campaign it would seem that this at- 
tack was aimed at Fort Vallonia. The Delaware Indians living in 
the vicinity of Vallonia seemed to know that the raid was being 
executed but claimed they did not approve of it and laid the blame 
on the Pottawattomies. The whites who went in pursuit of the 
marauders seemed to be afraid to follow them. A party from Val- 
lonia fell in with the retreating savages but were unable to stop 
them. No satisfactory account of the raid has ever been written 
and perhaps never will be. No record seems ever to have been 
made by any one who knew the facts from the Indian side. 

Within the present limits of the county of Scott, there 
was, in 1812, a place that was called the "Pigeon Roost 



J ) 



Indian Border Wars 129 

settlement. This settlement, which was founded by a few 
families, in 1809, was confined to about a square mile of 
land, and it was separated from all other settlements by a 
distance of five or six miles. In the afternoon of the 3d 
of September, 1812, Jeremiah Payne, and a man whose 
name was Coffman, were hunting for "bee trees" in the 
woods, about two miles north of the Pigeon Eoost settle- 
ment, and were surprised and killed by a party of Indians. 
This party of Indians, which consisted of ten or twelve 
warriors, nearly all of whom were Shawnees, then attacked 
the Pigeon Roost settlement, about sunset, on the evening 
of the 3d of September; and, in the space of about one 
hour, killed one man, five women, and sixteen children. 
The bodies of some of these victims of savage warfare 
were burned in the fires that consumed the cabins in which 
the murders were perpetrated. 

The persons who were massacred at this settlement 
were Henry Collings and his wife, Mrs. Payne, wife of 
Jeremiah Payne, and eight of her children, Mrs. Richard 
Collings, and seven of her children, Mrs. John Morris, and 
her only child, and Mrs. Morris, the mother of John Mor- 
ris. Mrs. Jane Biggs, with her three small children, escaped 
from the settlement, eluded the vigilance of the Indians, 
and, about an hour before daylight, on the next morning, 
arrived at the house of her brother, Zebulon Collings, who 
lived about six miles from the scene of the carnage. Wil- 
liam Collings, who had passed the age of sixty years, de- 
fended his house, for the space of three-quarters of an 
hour, against the attacks of the Indians. In this defense, 
he was assisted by Captain John Morris. There were two 
children in the house. As soon as it began to grow dark, 
Mr. Collings and Captain Morris escaped with the two chil- 
dren (John Collings and Lydia Collings), from the house, 
eluded the pursuit of the Indians, and, on the morning of 
the next day, reached the house of Zebulon Collings. 

A number of the militia of Clark County immediately 
proceeded to the scene of the Pigeon Roost massacre, where 
they found several of the mangled bodies of the dead, sur- 

9—1643 



130 Readings in Indiana History 

rounded by the smoking ruins of the houses. These re- 
mams of the murdered persons were brought together, and 
buried in one grave. 

On the afternoon of the 4th of September, about one 
hundred and fifty mounted riflemen, under the command 
of Major John McCoy, followed the trail of the Indians 
about twenty miles, when "the darkness of the night" com- 
pelled them to give up the pursuit. A small scouting 
party under the command of Captain Devault discovered 
and made an attack upon the retreating Indians, who, after 
killing one of Captain Devault 's men, continued their flighi 
through the woods, and eluded the pursuit of the scouting 
party. 

On the 6th of September, the militia of Chirk county 
were reinforced by sixty mounted volunteers from Jeffer- 
son county, under the command of Colonel William Mc- 
Farland; and, on the evening of the 7th, about three hun- 
dred and fifty volunteers from Kentucky were ready to 
unite with the Indiana militia of Clark and Jefferson coun- 
ties, for the purpose of making an attack on the Delaware 
Indians — some of whom were suspected of having been 
engaged in the destruction of the Pigeon Roost settlement. 
It seems, however, that a spirit of jealousy, which prevailed 
among some of the officers, defeated the intentions of those 
who, at that time, proposed to destroy the towns of the 
friendly Delawares, who lived on the western branch of 
White river. 

After the time of the Pigeon Roost massacre, many of 
the settlers on the northern and western frontiers of Clark, 
Jefferson, Harrison, and Knox counties, lived in a state 
of alarm until the close of the war, in 1815. Mr. Zebulon 
Collings, who lived within six miles of the Pigeon Roost set- 
tlement, says : ' ' The manner in which I used to work, 
in those perilous times, was as follows : On all occasions 
I carried my rifle, tomahawk, and butcher-knife, with a 
loaded pistol in my belt. When I went to plow, I laid my 
gun on the plowed ground, and stuck up a stick by it, for 
a mark, so I could get it quickly in case it was wanted. I 



Indian Border Wars 



131 



had two good dogs. I took one into the house, leaving the 
other out. The one ontside was expected to give the alarm, 
which would cause the one inside to bark, by which I would 
be awakened, having my guns always loaded. I kept my 
horses in a stable, close to the house, ha\dng a porthole 
so that I could shoot to the stable door. During the two 
years I never went from home with any certainty of re- 
turning — not knowing the minute I might receive a ball 
from an unknown hand ; but in the midst of all these dan- 
gers, that God who never sleeps nor slumbers, has kept 



me 



) 5 



*V^. 










-4- i-JL=ssjuIt- 









Fort Wayne about 1812. 



38. The War of 1812: Siege of Fort Wayne 

(From tlie Ilixtorij of Kentucky, by Mann Butler [18.34 J, pp. 347-358.) 
The siege of Fort Wayne fell to the Pottawattomie and Chippe- 
wa Indians. According to a prearranged plan, as soon as they 
had invested the fort the British were to come with cannons and 
troops from IMalden. The siege was conducted by Chief Winnamae 
from aliout September 1, to Septemher 12, 1812, Avhen it was raised 
by tlic approacli of General Harrison from Picjua with 2,000 troops. 
Mr. IJutler, who was well ac(|uaint('d with the men who did this 



132 Readings in Indiana History- 

fighting, has left us the following account, written soon after the 
war was over : 

On the evening of the 4tli (Sept., 1812), General Har- 
rison received further intelligence, that the British and In- 
dian force had left Maiden on the 18th of August to join 
the Indians already engaged in the siege of Fort Wayne. 

On the 6tli, after receiving a supply of flints, which had 
been utterly wanting, the troops made forced marches till, 
on the 8th, they overtook Colonel Allen's regiment at the 
St. Mary's.^^ At this point he had halted, by orders from 
the General, 'Ho build blockhouses for the security of pro- 
visions and the protection of the sick." From this time, 
the troops, including the corps of mounted volunteers, now 
"two thousand two hundred strong," were placed on half 
rations. 

While at Piqua, a Shawnee half-blood by the name of 
Logan (a former captive to General Logan of Kentucky), 
at the desire of the Indian agent, penetrated through the 
Indian force to Fort Wayne. He brought intelligence of 
the actual siege, and reported that the British reinforce- 
ments had not passed up the Maumee. The Indians had 
not been attentive to ascertaining the movements of our 
troops; their scouts from Fort Wayne had not been able 
to get round our camp before daybreak. They returned 
to their fellow warriors with the exclamation, that "Ken- 
tuc was coming, as numerous as the trees ! ' ' The army 
now advanced at a slow rate; "scouts were placed from 
half a mile to a mile in front, and also beyond the right 
and left flanks." By the lltli instant, the fort was ap- 
proached by our troops within twenty miles ; and when the 
army had halted, the whole encampment was immediately 
"fortified with a breastwork of logs, and brush cleared 
away for thirty paces on the outside." During the night, 
the alarms of Indians "attempting to approach and exam- 
ine the camp" were frequent. 

Early the next morning, the troops were in motion, fully 

*^ St. Mary's River, which unites with tlie St. Joseph's River at Fort Wayne, 
to form the Maumee River. 



Indian Border Wars 133 

expecting to meet the Indians at a remarkable swamp, five 
miles on this side of Fort Wayne. As the army approached 
this critical passage, the horsemen nnder Adams and John- 
son (the latter of whom had been elected Major) were 
ordered to march round it on the left, while the main army 
passed over. At this passage, the swamp was only one 
hundred yards wide ; although generally it was three times 
this distance in breadth, and about one mile in length. Our 
troops passed without seeing the least sign of an Indian, 
until they got through, where they found the marks of a re- 
cent Indian encampment. A single Indian was the only ves- 
tige of the late besieging army, most of whom had fled the 
previous evening, and some only a few minutes before 
the appearance of the army. Could confidence in their 
own military arts be exhibited more undauntedly, than by 
these facts? About two hours before sunset the troops 
arrived at the fort, to the great relief of its harassed gar- 
rison. 

This spot, so remarkable in the history of the western 
country, richly deserves a brief description. It is delight- 
fully situated below the junction of the St. Mary's and the 
St. Joseph's, on the south side. It was known to the French 
as Ome,*^'^ and was the principal town of the Miamis for 
more than a century; it had been the principal rendezvous 
for the Indians of the lakes, and of the Wabash and Illinois. 
The French traders had frequented it before 1755. The 
conveniences of navigation from this point had no doubt 
principally contributed to make it a resort to such extent. 
The Miami, or Maumee, to distinguish it from the Miami 
rivers of the Ohio, is navigable for boats from this place to 
the lake,*^* and the portage to the nearest navigable branch 
of the Wabash is but seven or eight miles, through a level, 
marshy prairie, from which the water runs both to the Wa- 
bash and St. Mary's. 

The next day after the arrival of the army it was deter- 
mined to divide it into two corps ; and to proceed in quest 
of the Indians and their towns. The principal intention 

"'From the French words [Au M]iamls, meaning "of the Miamis." 
" Lake Erie. 



134 Readings in Indiana History 

of these expeditions was to destroy tlie provisions of the In- 
dians, so that they coukl not find the means of subsistence. 
The party under General Payne having traversed a fine re- 
gion of country, arrived on tlie 15th at the village in the 
forks, which had been abandoned by the Indians. They 
encamped in the town and cut up the corn and other vege- 
tables in the fields. 

The tomb of a chief, built of logs and daubed with clay, 
w^as found in one of these villages. He was laid on his 
blanket, with his gun and his pipe by his side, a small tin 
pan on his breast, containing a wooden spoon and a number 
of earrings and brooches — all deemed necessary to the other 
world. 

The party under Colonel Wells had to march about sixty 
miles to the town against which they were sent. On the 
16th, having crossed the Elldiart [river] above the village, 
the troops surrounded the town, but to their deep mortifica- 
tion, found it abandoned, with abundance of provisions in 
it. This village was called Five Medals, from a chief of 
that name, who made it his residence. On a pole before the 
door of that chief 's cabin a red flag was hung with a broom 
tied above it; and on another pole at the tomb of an old 
woman a white flag was flying. The body of the old woman 
was placed upright, with her face to the east and a basket 
beside her containing trinkets, such as owl and hawk bills, 
claws, and a variety of bones, and bunches of roots tied to- 
gether; all of which indicated that she had been revered as 
a sorceress, and probably as a doctress. In proof of the 
intelligence which the Indian procured it must be mentioned 
that a Cincinnati newspaper, containing an account of Gen- 
eral Harrison's army, was found in one of these Indian 
huts. The village, with seventy acres of corn, was all de- 
stroyed. The troops returned to the fort by the 18th, a 
few hours after the party under General Payne, 

By the 17tli Colonel Simrall, at the head of a regiment 
of three hundred and twenty dragoons, armed with muskets, 
and a company of mounted riflemen, under Colonel Farrow, 
of Montgomery County, Kentucky, arrived at Ft. Wayne. 
This reinforcement was immediately dispatched against the 



Indian Border Wars 



135 



town of Little Turtle, about twenty miles on the northwest, 
with orders to destroy it all except the building erected by 
the United States for the chief of that name. This chief 
had shown a friendship for the Americans after the treaty 
of Greenville, in 1795, which had contributed greatly to the 
preservation of peace. The orders of Colonel Simrall were 
executed with promptness and dispatch, and on the 19th he 
returned in the evening to the fort. 




Chief Little Turtle. 



39. Lile on the Twelve Mile Purchase from 1810 to 1814 

(From Young, .1 Ili.sforn of M'di/nc Count i/. iip. (>()-(>7; account by Mks. 

Rebecca .Julian [about 1S.j4].) 

The Twelve Mile Purchase lay along the west side of the 
Greenville Treaty line. Mrs. Julian lived in Wayne county, near 
the frontier line. Her home was near the Indian towns on the 
upper White river. The settlers feared these savai^es would attack 
them as the Waliash trilies had attacked the Pijjreon Roost settle- 
ment. Fortunately the Wayne county settlers were on fairly good 
terms with their neighboring red men and no harm was done. The 
three following selections show conditions at the three most ex- 



136 Readings in Indiana History 

posed points of the Indiana frontier during the War of 1812. Each 
was written by a person who lived there at the time. 

The country around us was an entire wilderness, with 
here and there a small cabin, containing a small family. We 
were nearly all beginners at that time, and although we 
had to work almost day and night, we were not discouraged. 

We were in fine spirits until the battle was fought at 
Tippecanoe by General Harrison and the Indians. After 
that we lived in continual fear, and passed many sleepless 
nights. Well do I recollect how I kept my head raised off 
of my pillow in listening, expecting the savages to come and 
take our scalps. We had every reason to believe that such 
would be the case, as they were frequently to be seen scout- 
ing all around us. At length the time arrived when two 
men were stationed at our fort for our protection. My hus- 
band also enlisted and served three months as a soldier, but 
was not called out from the fort. We were truly thankful 
that there was no fighting to be done, as we were then few 
in number and completely in the power of the enemy. But 
it is evident that they intended harming only such persons 
as they thought hostile to them. 

A young man named Shortridge was killed by the In- 
dians about three miles from our fort. He had on at that 
time a portion of the dress of another man, who had made 
threats against them, and it is supposed that they mistook 
him for the latter. In the spring following Charles Mor- 
gan and his two half-brothers were killed at their sugar- 
camp, scalped, and one of them thrown into the fire. This 
happened about six miles from our residence. This was 
quite alarming ; we knew not what to do ; we gathered our- 
selves in small groups in order to hold counsel. Finally, we 
concluded to leave our new homes, which we did, time after 
time, for the space of two years. We were grateful, indeed, 
to see peace returning, so we could again enjoy our homes. 
There were many and serious trials in the beginning of 
this country and those who settled amid the heavy timber 
had nothing to depend on for a living but their own in- 
dustry. Such was our situation. However, we were blest 



Indian Border Wars 137 

with health and strength, and were able to accomplish all 
that was necessary to be done. Our husbands cleared the 
ground and assisted each other in rolling the logs. We 
often went with them on these occasions to assist in the way 
of cooking for the hands. We had first-rate times, just 
such as hard-laboring men and women can appreciate. 

We were not what would now be called fashionable 
cooks ; we had no pound cakes, preserves, or jellies ; but the 
substantials, prepared in plain, honest, old-fashioned style. 
This is one reason why we were so blessed with health — we 
had none of your dainties, nicknacks, and many fixings that 
were worse than nothing. There are many diseases that 
we never heard of thirty or forty years ago, such as dyspep- 
sia, neuralgia, and many others too tedious to mention. It 
was not fashionable at that time to be weakly. We could 
take our spinning-wheels and walk two miles to a spinning 
frolic, do our day's work, and, after a first-rate supper, join 
in some innocent amusement for the evening. We did not 
take very particular pains to keep our hands white ; there- 
fore we never thought of having hands just to look at. Each 
settler had to go and assist his neighbors ten or fifteen days, 
or thereabouts, in order to get help again at log-rolling 
time — this was the only way to get assistance. 

40. In the Vallonia Neighborhood 

(From Reminiscences of John Ketchaiu, by Rev. T. M. Hopkins [1866], 

pp. 11-15.) 

IMr. Ketcham settled at Vallonia in Jackson County in 1811. 
This was the most exposed part of the Indiana frontier and it was 
with difficulty the settlement was preserved during the war. The 
valley of the Driftwood and Muscatatuck at this place was a favor- 
ite hunting ground of Indians and they gave it up reluctantly. 
Long after the war was over, Indians returned to visit white friends 
and hunt in the bottoms of Driftwood. The following selection, 
written by Mr. Ketcham, was read as part of his funeral dis- 
course by ]\Tr. Hopkins, February 9, 1865 : 

I propose to give a short history of our Indian troubles 
of 1812-1813 in that part of the Indiana Territory commonly 
called the * ' Forks, ' ' situated between Muscatatuck and the 



138 Readings in Indiana History- 

Driftwood fork of White river, called by the Indians Han- 
gonaliakqua seepo (han'-gon-a-hak'-wa-se-po). In April, 
1811, we settled on section 14, tow^nship 5 n., range 4 east. 
Said section was made fractional by the Indian'^'' boundary 
line cutting off the northwest corner. The Indians were nu- 
merous and friendly in that part of the territory until after 
the Tippecanoe battle, which took place on the 7th of Novem- 
ber, 1811. The Delaware tribe expressed disajDprobation 
of the battle and many of the Indians left our part of the 
Territory then, but not all. We enjoyed peace, but not 
without fear, until April 7th, 1812 ; about two and a half 
miles above our location there lived three families together 
— Hinton, Cox, and Reddick. Their horses grazed in what 
was called the Cherry Bottom, five or six miles above. 

Hinton started in the morning to get a horse for some 
})urpose, but as he did not return that day, his friends went 
in search of him, and ascertained that their horses were all 
stolen, and that Hinton was murdered or taken prisoner. 
The circumstances being made known to our neighborhood, 
we all went in search of the missing man. When we ar- 
rived at the Cherry Bottom two men were sent to examine 
the river shore. The balance were so divided as to sweep 
the bottom at one through. He was found shot through 
the head, stripped and thrown into the river. We laid him 
on a blanket, tied the corners over a pole and started home. 
Night overtaking us, we cut forks and raised the corpse out 
of the reach of wolves. A proposition was then made to 
John Ketcham and Noah Wright that if Ketcham would 
write a letter and Wright take it to the Governor, then at 
Charlestown, they should be exempt from lielping to bring 
in and bury the dead — agreed to. 

Next morning (Sunday) about ten o'clock myself and 
family were shut up in the house. I was lying on a pallet 
before the fire, when suddenly, without speaking, three In- 
dians, each having a gun, pushed open the door and came in. 
I requested them to take seats. They placed their guns in 
the corner of the house and took seats. I took occasion to 

""The northeast lioiiiulnry lino (if tlio Piircliaso liy tlio Troaty of Fort Wayno, 
Sept. 30, 1809. 



Indian Border Wars 139 

examine their guns and found them primed and loaded. It 
was not common when the Indians called on the whites (for 
them) to have any guns with them. Sometimes they had 
one, but that not loaded. They could speak pretty good 
English. I asked them "what news!" They answered, 
' ' none. ' ' I told them of the murder of Hinton and the stolen 
horses. They then observed that three days past seven 
Winnebago Indians passed their camp going towards Cher- 
ry Bottom. I then let them know that we had sent a man 
to tell the Governor what was done, and in a little time he 
would send men to hunt up the bad Indians. I asked them 
if they would go with me to the burying. They consented. 

My wife objected to my going with them and wept. The 
oldest (child) sympathized with her and shed tears, too. We 
started, I leading the way. We had proceeded nearly a mile, 
when they stopped, said, "We no go, make white man heap 
mad, " so we returned, but found nobody at the house. My 
wife and children had secreted th&mselves in the bushes, 
supposing that they would kill me and return and kill them 
and plunder the house. 

The conduct of the three Indians was very suspicious. 
They had brought skins to trade with me, but left them hid 
some distance from the house, saying nothing about tliem 
until after our return. Just as we returned McCollough, 
who had a squaw to wife, and another white man happened 
to come there. Mc. told them that if they didn't leave im- 
mediately, ' ' every devil of them should be killed. ' ' They re- 
turned to their camp and left in great haste, leaving some 
of their valuables. They were the last camp of Indians 
that left our frontier that season. 

In about ten days, the Indian agent, residing at the 
Delaware town, sent two Indians, Salt Peter and Peter Van- 
vacter, wdtli a letter and a white flag, stating that it was not 
the Delawares who had done the mischief, but the Kicka- 
poos, who had passed through their town with the stolen 
liorses. The two messengers remained with the whites 
many weeks. Peter Vanvacter hired to work and never 
returned— (he) was murdered by some unprincipled white 



140 Readings in Indiana History 

man because lie was an Indian. A man was killed near 
Widow Solida's a few miles from Muscatatuck; his name 
is not now recollected. Another man was killed on White 
river at McCowen's Ferry. 

At the commencement of our Indian troubles there were 
upwards of seventy families living in the Forks, but in a 
few weeks after Hinton's murder upwards of fifty families 
left the country, and some for safety crossed the Ohio river. 
The balance, fifteen or eighteen families, determined not to 
leave and built blockhouses and forts. John Sage and 
others built a fort at his place, but the principal fort was at 
Vallonia, Huff's fort, higher up, and Ketcham's fort, still 
above and outside. We all lived in forts, went in companies 
to work our little improvements ; some stood sentinel, while 
others worked, and thus we got along for awhile. 

The good people of Harrison and Clark counties, con- 
sidering the small number left in the Forks, and they shut 
up in forts, could not hold out long. The most good they 
seemed to do was to be a kind of Indian bait, for the safety 
of the interior countries, who probably taking that view of 
the subject, reinforced us by sending company after com- 
pany to help us maintain our stand. The Indians began to 
understand by our preparations that we would sooner fight 
a little than quit our location, although very few that re- 
mained during the war were owners of land, many having 
settled over the boundary line, where the land did not come 
into market for several years after. 

About the time that Fort Harrison and Fort Wayne 
were besieged by the Indians, namely, the 4th of September, 
1812, a marauding party of Indians, who passed north of 
our forts, fell on the unguarded and unsuspecting neighbor- 
hood of Pigeon Roost,'^'^ killing twenty-three men, women 
and children — mostly women and children. After robbing 
the houses they set fire to them, and stole horses to carry 
off their booty. About the same time Major Duvall, of 
Salem, with a small company of men, made a scout up White 
river, and it so happened that while they were passing over 
some fallen timber on Sand creek, they came in contact with 

"> See above, selection 37, on the Pigeon Roost Massacre. 



Indian Border Wars 141 

tbe Indians on their return from the Pigeon Roost. Those 
of them who had horses threw off their large packs and 
made good their retreat. Two others who had no horses 
tied in another direction, pursued by the men. John Zink, 
one of the party, being young and athletic, outran his com- 
rades, and when the Indians discovered that they (Zink and 
his companions) were separated, they devised a plan to 
shoot Zink. In crossing a ravine one Indian secreted him- 
self, while the other showed himself in plain view within 
shooting distance. Zink stopped to shoot, but the secreted 
Indian fired first, giving him a mortal wound. Zink lay in 
his gore that rainy night, and was found by his companions 
next morning still alive, and brought to Ketcham's fort, 
where he was washed and comfortably clothed and Dr. 
Lamb, of Salem, sent for. The Doctor arrived, drew a silk 
handkerchief through the wound and started home. Zink 
died before they reached Vallonia. The three large packs 
were opened, and found to consist of men's^ women's and 
children's clothing. We knew then that some settlement 
had been destroyed, bu-t at the time knew not what one. 

About the last of September, 1812, Absalom Buskirk and 
brother-in-law took a two-horse team to his field to get 
some corn and pumpkins. The Indians killed Buskirk and 
stole his two fine horses. The corpse was brought into 
Ketcham's fort the same evening, and on the next morning 
John Johnson, Robert Sturgeon and others came and hauled 
the corpse to Huif's fort for interment; after which Stur- 
geon started home and was killed at the half-mile branch, 
near Vallonia. Although there w^ere stationed at Vallonia 
a number of militiamen, they were unwilling to risk their 
own scalps and refused to go for the dead. After night 
three citizens, namely, Craig, Rogers, and Beem, went witli 
their dogs and brought the corpse to the fort. 

After the murder of Buskirk and Sturgeon no other per- 
sons were killed during the fall and winter following, but 
many alarms were given and horses stolen. I will insert a 
few cases. * 

One night Daniel Stout, who now lives near Blooming- 
ton, and others were at Ketcham's fort. After their senti- 



142 Readings in Indiana History 

nels were placed out in different directions around the fort, 
two heard and a third saw two Indians and fired at tlieni, 
and then fled to the fort, expecting next morning to find a 
dead Indian, or a trail of blood ; but a hard rain fell that 
night and we found no Indian or blood. 

At another time, about corn gathering. Captain Hiram 
Boone, with twelve or fifteen men, was at Ketcham's fort. 
'They tied their horses to stakes driven in the ground in the 
yard, not far from the fort. A large poplar stump stood 
rather between two of the houses, not more than five steps 
from either. In that stump holes were bored and hooks 
driven in and four or five horses fastened to them. The 
night was clear, but the moon did not rise until after night. 
While it was yet dark the Indians opened the yard fence 
into the corn field and let down one bar on another square 
of the yard fence. The bars were within twelve or fifteen 
steps of the big stump. An Indian slipped through the 
bars and got to the horses undiscovered, but while loosing 
his choice horse — a fine gelding — one of the guard fired at 
him but he clung to the horse. Another guard fired at him, 
but he led the horse off through the gap into the corn field. 
By this time Captain Boone and five or six of his men pur- 
sued the Indian having the horse. 

While the chase was going on Ketcham Avas standing in 
the yard giving some directions, when an Indian, secreted 
near the bars, not more than twenty steps distant, fired at 
him. Boone halted and asked who had shot. I replied, 
' ' an Indian. ' ' One of his men said," Captain, let us tree. ' ' He 
replied, ** We don't know on which side of the tree to get; we 
will return to the fort. ' ' The party was composed of about 
sixteen Indians. We counted their trail next morning 
through a newly cut buckwheat patch, and at that time dis- 
covered what their policy had been On each side of the 
gap opening into the cornfield there was placed a strong 
guard, also on each side of the bars ; if an Indian had been 
closely pursued in either direction the guard would have 
shot down his pursuers. 

Although it was believed that the Indians were contin- 
ually prowling about some of our forts, the people got so 



Indian Border Wars 143 

hardened to danger that they seemed not to dread their 
enemy. One niglit Mr. Hntcherson and family, together 
with some of the militiamen, concluded to stay at his house, 
a short distance from Huff's fort. They felt safe and 
liappy, and having a fiddle, concluded to have a dance and 
enjoy themselves first rate ; but in the morning when they 
awoke they found that their horses w^ere all gone. While 
they were dancing the Indians were catching their horses. 
Pursuit was made, and after following their trail a few 
miles they met David Sturgeon's old, ugly horse coming 
back with a leather tug tied so tightly around his throat that 
he could scarcely get his breath. They did this, probably, 
to show their contempt for the white man's old ugly horse. 
They recovered no more horses. 

Long after that time the Indians stole tw^o horses from 
Flinn's settlement. They were pursued by General Tip- 
ton, David and James Rogers, and others, who follow^ed 
them for several days, when they found they were close on 
them, the water being muddy in tlieir tracks. Tipton's 
plan was to follow them slowly and cautiously until night, 
then have fine sport tomaliawking them. But his spies. 
Major Sparks and Mr. , disobeyed orders. The In- 
dians had halted over the turn of a hill, dressing the horses' 

manes and tails. The Major and got wdthin thirty 

or forty steps of the Indians before they discovered them. 
The temptation was too great ; they fired, but missed. 

When Tipton came up and saw what was done, he cried 
like a child ; and was tempted to tomahawk the Major. Their 
provisions were exhausted and they were far from 
liome. Tlie rains had swollen tlie creeks until they were 
past fording; those who could swim had to do so. They 
came to a large creek in the north end of Monroe county. 
A uum by the name of Bean Blossom in attempting to swdm 
the creek came very near drowming, and Tipton named the 
creek Bean Blossom after his name, and so it is called to 
til is day. 

At another time General Tipton and Captain Beam, with 
perhaps twenty men, made a scout'' to tho west fork of 

■' Make ii sidiit. 'i> iiiiikc ;i siirvi'.v ; n reconnaissance. 



144 Readings in Indiana History 

White river. Before they got to tlie river they crossed a 
beautiful stream that empties into Bean Blossom near its 
mouth, A man by the name of Jack Storm and another 
man named Jack Ketcham, in crossing the stream, got both 
of their horses mired and stuck fast in the mud. They then 
named the creek Jack's Defeat, and so it is called to this 
day. 

41. The Maria Creek Settlement 

(From Indiana Magazine of Histori/, X, pp. 96-98; accoimt by James PolivE 

[about 1885].) 

The Maria Creek Settlement was a few miles above Vincennes 
on the Wabash. It was on the frontier, like Vallonia, but the 
Indians had been overawed by Fort Knox, Fort Harrison and the 
Tippecanoe campaign until they did not molest the settlers so much 
as they did around Vallonia. This selection is from 'Reminis- 
cences' written by James Polke,'- late in his life. 

My father, Charles Polke, was united in marriage with 
Margaret McQuaid, the eldest daughter of Rev. James 
McQuaid, in the year 1803. My father bought a small tract 
of land in the deep and dark forest of that early day of pio- 
neer life in that (then) new country. The locality of his 
new home proved to be sickly, subject to fever and ague, and 
in the year 1806 he sold out his new home and came out to 
^'Old Post Vincennes." 

My father carried me in his lap on horseback and my 
mother carried my eldest sister (Delilah), then about nine 
months old. With their pack horses they rode through the 
wilderness over one hundred miles and arrived at the 'Old 
Post' in September, 1806. The village was composed of 
French inhabitants and Indian traders, with but few Amer- 
ican inhabitants. Major William Bruce, a brother-in-law 
of my father, had come to Indiana Territory in 1805 and 
settled about eight miles north of Vincennes, where the town 
of Bruceville is now located (known then as Maria Creek 
Settlement), lots having been sold in 1816. 

My father spent the first winter here and during his stay 
bought one hundred acres of land on the waters of Maria 

'= See introduction to selections 29 and 30. 



Indian Border Wars 145 

creek. In tlie early spring of 1807 he erected a cabin house 
on this land and made a permanent settlement. He lived 
and died on the same (in 1845), my mother surviving him 
ten years, and dying in 1855, aged 70 years. The first dawn- 
ing of my memory of the things of my eventful life were 
here in this humble cabin house. Here we were in Indiana 
Territory, the country wild and unsettled, surrounded by 
Indians in this wilderness land. The Indians camped and 
hunted around us during the hunting season and the crack 
of the rifle could be heard almost any day, killing deer, wild 
turkeys, and other game ; but all was peaceable then. 

About 1810 all was changed by the influence of the Brit- 
ish traders over the war chiefs of the Indian tribes of the 
Northwest ; but this is a matter of history, as are the Indian 
war of 1811 and the British war of 1812, which followed, 
and the peace that followed in 1815. 

In this new country, as indicated, my experience of life 
commenced and for the first five years of my life events 
were deeply imprinted on the tablet of my heart and mem- 
ory. The Indian war of 1811 was fast looming up and my 
father took me on horseback behind him to my grand- 
father's in Shelby County, Kentucky. We traveled the 
traceway by which he had come to Indiana Territory in 1806 
— through the Blue River Barrens by Corydon, Harrison 
County, Indiana. My uncle. Spier Spencer, the first sheriff 
of the county (1808), lived here. He had been with General 
Sinclair (St. Clair) and General Wayne in the early Indian 
wars. He had organized a volunteer company to fight the 
savage Indians of the upper Wabash on the Tippecanoe. I 
saw him parade his company in the streets of Corydon. He 
joined General Harrison at Vincennes, then the headquar- 
ters. My father soon returned to Indiana and joined in 
General Harrison's campaign to the Tippecanoe, which was 
fought on the 7th of November, 1811. 



K)-- ifi4;} 



146 Readings in Indiana History 



41a. The Pioneers 

(From Poets and Poetry of the West, compiled liy William F. 

COGGESHALL [18G4].) 

By Charles A. Jones (1815-1851) 

Where are the hardy yeomen 

Who battled for this land, 
And trod these hoar old forests, 

A brave and gallant band! 
Oh, know ye where they slumber, 

No monument a^^pears 
For Freedom 's pilgrims to draw nigh, 

And hallow with their tears 1 
Or were no works of glory 

Done in the olden time I 
And has the West no story 

Of deathless deeds sublime? 
* * * 

They knew no dread of danger. 

When rose the Indian's yell; 
Right gallantly they struggled, 

Right gallantly they fell; 
From Alleghany's summit, 

To the farthest western shore. 
These brave men's bones are lying 

Where they perished in their gore ; 
And not a single monumen; 

Is seen in all the land, 
In honor of the memory 

Of that heroic band. 



PART III. PIONEER INDIANA, 1816-1836 



CHAPTER V 
42. Introductory Sketch 

There were three classes of pioneers. First came the hunters 
and trappers. They had neither families nor homes. They lived in 
temporary camps wherever there was plenty of game. Next came 
the "squatters" who were the hunters and trappers with their fam- 
ilies. The}^ sought out suitable places beside springs of cool water 
and there built temporary cabins. The wives and cliildren planted 
garden truck and corn in the clearings. If evei-ything remained 
pleasant they would buy the land and become permanent settlers ; 
l)ut most probably after two or three years, when game began to get 
scarce and wild, they gathered up their few belongings and moved 
out on the frontier again. History has no permanent record of 
these advance guards. For this reason almost every community in 
Indiana has a never-ending dispute as to when it was first settled 
and who its first settlers were. Tradition correctly points to the 
hunter and squatter. Finally the records at the courthouse name 
the third class, the men who bought land and made homes, the 
permanent settlers. 

The period from 1816 to 1836 has been taken as the pioneer time 
of Indiana. It was a period of preparation. Everything was tem- 
porary — temporary cabins, temporary barns, if any at all, tem- 
porary fences, fields full of stumps and dead trees, temporary 
churches, temporary schools, temporary roads, temporary govern- 
ment, temporary preachers, teachers, lawyers, and physicians. There 
was not time, until they got settled in their new homes, to go at 
anything systematically. The wild, free, open air life of the pioneer 
has its attractiveness for us even yet. The following selections are 
intended to give some pictures of this life. 




House in which Abraham Lincoln was Born. 

From Tarbell's Life of Lincoln, I, p. 20. By special permission. 

Three miles from Hodgensville, La Rue County, Kentucky. Thomas Lincoln moved into this 
cabin in 1S08. Here, on February 12, 1809, Abraham Lincoln was born. It was long ago torn down, 
but the logs were saved, and recently the property was bought by New York people who rebuilt the 
old cabin on the original site. 



If 



-. j.^i6i4r»«rf 




Lincoln Farm in Indiana. 
From Tarbell's Lije of Lincoln, I, p. 26. By special permission. 

(148) 



CHAPTER VI 
LIFE IN THE WILDERNESS ABOUT 1816 

43. Lincoln's Indiana Home 

(From The Life of Abraham Lincoln, I, pp. 18-21, by Ida M. Taruell 
[1895]. By special permission of the editors of McClur&s Magazine.) 

In 1816 a great event happened to the little boy. His 
father emigrated from Knob creek to Indiana. ^'This re- 
moval was partly on account of slavery, but chiefly on ac- 
count of the difficulty in land titles in Kentucky," says his 
son. It was due, as well, no doubt, to the fascination which 
an unknown couhtry has for the adventurous, and to that 
restless pioneer spirit which drives even men of sober judg- 
ment continually toward the frontier in search of a place 
where the conflict with nature is less severe — some spot far- 
ther on, to which a friend or a neighbor has preceded, and 
from which he sends back glowing reports. It may be that 
Thomas Lincoln was tempted into Indiana by the reports 
of his brother Joseph, who had settled on the Big Blue river 
in that State. At all events, in the fall of 1816 he started 
with wife and children and household stores to journey by 
horseback and wagon from Knob creek to a farm selected 
on a previous trip he had made. This farm, located near 
little Pigeon creek, about fifteen miles north of the Ohio 
river, and a mile and a half east of Gentryville, Spencer 
County, was in a forest so dense that the road for the trav- 
elers had to be hewed out as they went. 

To a boy of seven years, free from all responsibility, and 
too vigorous to feel its hardships, such a journey must have 
been a long delight and wonder. Life suddenly ceased its 
routine, and every day brought forth new scenes and ad- 
ventures. Little Abraham saw forests greater than he had 
ever dreamed of, peopled by strange birds and beasts, and 
he crossed a river so wide that it must have seemed to him 
like the sea. To Thomas and Nancy Lincoln the journey 

(149) 



I50 



Readings in Indiana History 



was probably a hard and sad one; but to the chiklren be- 
side them it was a wonderful journey into the unknown. 

On arriving at the new farm an axe was put into the 
boy's hands and he was set to work to aid in clearing a field 
for corn and to help build the "half-face camp" which for 
a year was the home of the Lincolns. There were few more 
primitive homes in the wilderness of Indiana in 1816 than 
this of young Lincoln, and there were few families, even in 
that day, who were forced to practice more makeshifts to 
make a living. The cabin which took the place of the ' ' half- 
face camp" had but one room, with a loft above. For a 




iV^. 



^D 






Lincoln's Indiana Home. 

From Tarbell's Life of Lincoln, I, p. 32. By special permission. 

long time there was no window, door, or floor ; not even the 
traditional deer-skin hung before the exit; there was no 
oiled paper over the opening for light ; there was no punch- 
eon covering on the ground. 

The furniture was of their own manufacture. The table 
and chairs were of the ruder sort — rough slabs of wood, in 
which holes were bored and legs fitted in. Their bedstead, 
or, rather bed-frame, was made of poles held up by two 
outer posts, and the ends made firm by inserting the poles 
in auger holes that had been bored in a log which was a part 
of the wall of the cabin ; skins were its chief covering. Lit- 



Life in the Wilderness 151 

tie Abraham's bed was even more primitive. He slept on 
a heap of dry leaves in the corner of the loft, to which he 
mounted by means of pegs driven into the wall. 

Their food, if coarse, was usually abundant; the chief 
difficulty in supplying the larder was to secure any variety. 
Of game there was plenty — deer, bear, pheasants, wild tur- 
keys, ducks, birds of all kinds. There were fish in the 
streams, and wild fruits of many kinds in the woods in the 
summer, and those were dried for winter use ; but the diffi- 
culty of raising and milling corn and wheat was very great. 
Indeed, in many places in the West the first flour cake was 
an historical event. Corn-dodgers was the every-day bread 
of the Lincoln household, the wheat cake being a dainty re- 
served for Sunday mornings. 

Potatoes were the only vegetable raised in any quan- 
tity, and there were times in the Lincoln family when thej- 
were the only food on the table ; a fact proved to posterity 
by the oft-quoted remark of Abraham to his father after the 
latter had asked a blessing over a dish of roasted potatoes — 
"that they were mighty poor blessings." Not only were 
they all that the Lincolns had for dinner sometimes ; one of 
their neighbors tells of calling there when raw potatoes, 
pared and washed, were passed around instead of apples or 
other fruit. They even served as a kind of pioneer cliauf- 
frette' — being baked and given tc the children to carry 
in their hands as they started to school or on distant er- 
rands in winter time. 

The food was prepared in the rudest way, for the supply 
of both groceries and cooking utensils was limited. The 
former were frequently wanting entirely, and as for the 
latter, the most important item was the Dutch oven.^ An 
indispensable article in the primitive kitchen outfit was the 
''gritter. " It was made by flattening out an old piece of 
tin, punching it full of holes, and nailing it on a board. 
Upon this all sorts of things were grated, even ears of corn, 
in which slow way enough meal was sometimes secured for 
the bread. Old tin was used for many other contrivances 

^CliaiiflFrotto, a Frcnrh wiird monnin<; fool-wnrmcr. font s1ov(>. 
= Dutch ovi'ii. ;\ liakiiiy pcit or covered "skillet" heated by suiTonndins it with 
live coals. 



152 Readings in Indiana History 




Map Showing Indian Land Cessions 



Life in the Wilderness 153 

besides the * * gritter, ' ' and every scrap was carefully saved. 
Most of the dishes were of pewter, the spoons iron; the 
knives and forks were horn-handled. 

The Liijcolns, of course, made their own soap and can- 
dles, and if they had cotton or wool to wear they had lit- 
erally to grow it. It is probable that young Abraham Lin- 
coln wore little cotton or linsey-woolsey.-* His trousers 
were of roughly tanned deer-skin, his foot covering a home- 
made moccasin, his cap a coon-skin ; it was only the material 
for his blouse or shirt that was woven at home. If this 
costume had some obvious disadvantages, it was not to be 
despised. So good an authority as Governor Reynolds says 
of one of its articles — the linsey-w^oolsey shirt, "It was an 
excellent garment. I have never felt so happy and healthy 
since I put it off." 

These ''pretty pinching times," as Abraham Lincoln 
once described the early days in Indiana, lasted until 1819. 

44. A View of the New State 

(From Fordhcun's Personal Narrative, by Elias Pym Fordham [ISIS], pp. 
100-105. Copyright. By special permission of tlie Arthur H. Clarlc 
Company, Cleveland. ) 

Immediately after the close of the War of 1812 there was a 
rush from the eastern States for the western lands. A o^reat part of 
this was due to advertisements by land speculators. Morris Birk- 
beck, an enterprising- Englishman, was induced by Edward Coles, an 
American consul in England, to bring a colony over and settle on 
the Illinois Prairie. George Flower tried the same scheme. Ford- 
ham came over with Birkbeck. It was customary for these persons 
to write home concerning the new country. The following is a 
part of such a letter, written from Princeton (Gil)son County), 
Indiana, July 31, 1817: 

We left Cincinnati in the last week in June, and crossed 
over the Great Miami river into Indiana. Excejjting on 
the banks of the Rivers Ohio and Wabash this State is one 
vast forest, intersected by a few Blaze roads^ and two or 

' Linsey-woolsey, a coarse cloth made of linen and cotton. 

* "Blaze roads" are merely lines marked by "blazing," hacking trees with an ax. 
See below, selection No. 46. 



154 Readings in Indiana History 

three open roads. There are a few new towns, and some 
settlements on and near the state roads^' and rivers. These 
are generally from one to three years old ; though there are 
nmcli older and more substantial improvements on the 
Ohio ; and St. Vincennes on the Wabash was settled 30 years 
ago.*^ Indiana has been a State only two years. Its con- 
stitution seems to have exhausted the wisdom of all ages 
and countries — so complete is it — and yet so simple. It 
has a Governor, who is President of the Senate, and com- 
mander-in-chief of its armies ; a Lieutenant Governor ; a 
Senate ; a Legislative body ; and is represented in Congress 
]jy two members. Its Executive (Judiciary) consists of 
Circuit Courts, and a Supreme Court. Its civil code is 
founded on the common law of England. Every office, 
civil or military, is elective, and held only during good be- 
havior. Every citizen is by law a soldier, but he need not 
enter the regular army unless he choose it. Every citizen 
may carry what arms he pleases for the defense of his per- 
son or property. Slavery is not allowed in this State. All 
religions are protected. The word "tolerate" is not to be 
found in the articles of their Constitution. 

The land near the water courses is excellent. Some is of 
the very first quality ; but all that is quite conveniently sit- 
uated on the Ohio banks that is high, dry, and rich has al- 
ready been entered. It was bought at the auctions of the 
U. S. at high prices, from 10$ to 15$ per acre. What was 
not then sold may now be purchased at 2$ per acre at the 
land offices; but it [is] often better to give 6$ or 7$ to the 
first settler for his chosen section with an improvement up- 
on it, than to go into the woods, away from a navigable 
river and take land at the land office price. You have not 
a bad chance, however, in this latter plan, for there is a dis- 
trict as large as all England to be picked over now. 

^ state roads are roads built by state authority and not by tlie county. Most 
roads were laid out by the county. 

" The writer is in error. Vincennes was settled early in the 18th century. 



Life in the Wilderness 155 

45. The "Creep" of Civilized Life 

(From Enrhj Indiana Trials ami Sketches, by Senator O. H. Smith [1857], 

pp. 130-117.) 

Perhaps no pioneer of Indiana experienced the contrasts of 
pioneer and eastern society as did the writer of the following sketch. 
When notified that he had been elected to the United States Senate 
he was driving hogs to the Cincinnati market. His ' ' Sketches ' ' give 
ns some of the best insights into early Indiana life. 

At tlie time I came to the State in March, 1817, there 
was not a railroad in the United States, nor a canal west 
of the Alleghany mountains. The telegraph had not been 
discovered, fire was struck by the flint and steel, the falling- 
spark was caught in "punk" taken from the knots of the 
hickory tree. 

There was not a foot of turnpike road in the State, and 
plank roads had never been heard of. The girdled stand- 
ing trees covered the cultivated fields ; the shovel-plow 
(was) the only cultivator; no roads west of Whitewater; 
not a bridge in the State; the traveling (was) all done on 
horseback, the husband mounted before on the saddle, with 
one to three of the youngest children in his arms — the wife, 
with a spread cover reaching to the tail of the horse, seated 
behind, wdtli the balance of the children, unable to walk, in 
her lap. 



CHAPTER VII 
COMING OF THE SETTLERS 

The early settlers of Indiana came almost exclusively from the 
East and South. By far the larger number came from the South. 
These crossed the mountains into Kentucky where most of them set- 
tled for a short time. From there they crossed the Ohio river at 
various places. The principal crossings were at Cincinnati, the 
mouth of Kentucky river, or at Madison, the Falls at Louisville, at 
Boon's Ferry in Harrison county, at Fredonia,and at Yellow Banks. 
Those who came down from Pennsylvania landed along the north 
shore wherever the land attracted them. Many pushed their boats 
up the small streams. Others reached the interior in ox wagons 
along traces which they cut ahead of the team. Later they came 
by thousands over the National Road or by way of the Great Lakes. 

When Indiana was admitted into the Union it contained about 
65,000 people. These lived chiefly in the Whitewater valley, on the 
lower Wabash, and along the Ohio river hills. As a compromise to 
these widely separated pioneers, Corydon was chosen to be the seat 
of the State government. 

The problem of travel was a serious one, and was not liable to be 
overlooked by legislators who had made the trip to Corydon. From 
the Wabash country, they doubtless came on horseback over the 
Vineennes-Ohio Falls trail, which led through Mt. Pleasant, Paoli, 
and Fredericksburg. From the Whitewater, they traveled down 
the Ohio river, stopping at New Albany, or coming on down to 
Evans' Landing or Leavenworth, and thence by trail to the capital. 

The inconvenience of the location was manifest, and a commis- 
sion was appointed in 1820 to locate a site for a capital near the 
center of the State. Congress had already donated four sections of 
land for this purpose, and by 1825 Indianapolis was a hustling 
village of several hundred inhabitants. A newspaper had ap- 
peared as early as 1823, before the brush was cleared from the 
streets. If the problem of transportation had been insistent at 
Corydon, it became all-absorbing at Indianapolis. 

There were several well-defined lines of travel leading into the 
interior of Indiana at this time, each in a measure used by a 
distinct stream of immigrants. From Kentucky, Virginia, and the 
Carolinas, they came to Madison and Louisville. From Madison, a 

(156) 



Coming of the Settlers 157 

stage line was early established to the east fork of White river, or 
Driftwood creek, crossing at the mouth of Flat Rock. From 
Louisville, Jeffersonville, and New Albany two routes led to the 
interior; one by Salem, Bono, Bedford, and Bloomington to the 
Wabash at Lafayette; the other, as already mentioned, led by 
Greenville, Fredericksburg, Paoli, Mt. Pleasant, and Marysville to 
the Wabash at Vincennes. 

The southern part of the State was settled largely by emigrants 
from the Southern States. Along the Whitewater were many 
Ohioaus, Pennsylvanians, Yankees, and North Carolina Quakers, 
who had come by the National road or by way of the Ohio river to 
Cincinnati. The Whitewater valley found its commercial base in 
Cincinnati. Among them, however, even at this time, were many 
Quakers and IMoravians, driven from the South by hatred of slav- 
ery. In fact, the large majority of the early settlers who crossed 
the Ohio river at this period did so on account of slavery — too 
proud to work among slaves, too poor to own a plantation. 

One can scarcely realize the condition of Indiana in 1825, There 
was no railroad, no canal, no pike. All her rivers except the Ohio 
were obstructed by fallen trees, ripples, and bars. Two stage lines 
led to Indianapolis, one from Madison, the other from Centerville. 
The service was bad, roads frequently impassable, and stages 
usually late. 

46. Blazing the Wilderness Trail: Whetzel's Trace 

(From Historical Sketch of Johnson County, by David D. Banta [1881], 

pp. 9-11.) 

The Whetzel Trace was one of the three traces that led to John- 
son county and Indianapolis. Another led by way of Vernon to 
Madison. A third led by Columbus, Brownstown, Vallonia, Salem, 
and Cory don to Boon's Ferry, with a branch from Columbus to the 
Ohio Falls. Judge Banta, who wrote the following account, was 
well acquainted with the men who opened these traces. 

Some time during the latter part of 1817, Jacob Whetzel, 
then living in Franklin county, in this State, bought a tract 
of land in ''Harrison's Purchase," near the mouth of Eel 
Eiver, in Greene County. The usually travelled route 
from the Whitewater country, where Whetzel lived, to the 
''Purchase," was by way of the Ohio and Wabash Rivers, 
and from the Falls at Louisville, overland to that place. 



158 Readings in Indiana History 

Jacob Whetzel was a born and trained woodsman. He had 
been hunting wild beasts and fighting Indians all his life. 
He had served as a spy and scout with the armies of St. 
Clair and Harrison, and now that the pathless woods lay 
between him and his purchase, he determined to cut through 
rather than to go round. 

The Delaware Indians were at that time in undisturbed 
possession of the White River country, and Jacob Whetzel, 
early in the summer of 1818, applied to the Delaware Chief, 
Anderson, at his village on White River, where Anderson- 
town has since been located, and obtained his permission to 
cut a road through from near Brookville to the bluff of 
White River. In the month of July in company with his 
son Cyrus, a youth 18 years of age, and four good, stout 
axmen, Thomas Howe, Thomas Rush, Richard Rush, and 
Walter Banks, he set out for the nearest point on White 
River, intending to work from thence back to the settle- 
ments. Taking one of the men, Tliomas Rush, with him, he 
went in advance, blazing the proposed road, wliile young 
Cyrus, with the rest of the men, followed after, carrying 
their axes and nine days' provisions. These had not en- 
tered the wilderness very far, when, one evening late, they 
met a party of Indians, whose actions, notwithstanding 
their warm protestations of friendship, excited suspicion. 
The two parties passed each otlier, but the white men, with- 
out arms, kept a more vigilant guard that night than was 
common even in that day. The night set in cloudy, and rain 
soon began falling, but the hours passed quietly on, until 
the camp-fire burned low, when the man on watch dis- 
covered Indians lurking in the vicinity. Quietly waking 
his sleeping companions, they as noiselessly abandoned 
their camp, and, notwithstanding the darkness of the night, 
followed the track of Jacob AVhetzel and his associates, by 
"feeling of the notches and blazes cut in the trees." 
Whatever motive led the red men to prowl around their 
camp-fire that night, nothing more was seen of them on that 
journey. 

Meeting with no other hindrances save such as were in- 
cident to the trackless wilderness, Cyrus Whetzel and his 



Coming of the Settlers 159 

comrades journeyed on, crossing Flat Rock about seven 
miles below the present site of Rusliville ; Blue River, four 
miles above Shelbyville, and Sugar Creek a little north of 
Boggstown. On reacliing a water-course, a few miles east 
of White River, a nest of honey-bees was discovered in the 
hollow limb of a walnut tree, which yielded a large supi)ly 
of honey; but, being too bitter to be eaten, because made 
from a bitter honey-bearing bloom, it was reluctantly thrown 
away. Nevertheless, from this circumstance originated the 
name of ''Honey Creek,"' the first creek within tlie bor- 
ders of this county (Johnson) to receive a name at the 
hands of white men. 

White River was struck at a place Jacob Wlietzel and his 
party called the Bluffs, and we may well imagine that the 
scene which met the gaze of these pioneers was such as they 
little expected to behold. Jacob Whetzel had set out to 
reach, by a short cut, a prospective home at the mouth of 
the Eel;^ but, standing on the bluff, in those July days, he 
looked out over a wide, deep and rapidly-flowing river, 
through whose clear depths the eye could penetrate to the 
white pebbles that lay on the bottom far below, whose 
waters swarmed with fish, and whose level bottoms and roll- 
ing uplands were covered with great forests that grew from 
a soil of wonderful richness, and there, on the banks of the 
Waiv'-pe-kom^-i-koP of the Miami red men, he resolved 
should be his future home. 

Jacob Whetzel went on down the river alone, while 
young Cyrus and the axmen turned back and began the 
work of cutting out what was long known as " Whetzel 's 
Trace." Their progress was slow. A path had to be cut 
of a width sufficient to admit the passage of a team. After 
passing the rolling land extending a few miles back from 
the river, the country through which they went was level, 
and, at that season of the year, was almost an endless 
swamp. Their first day's work took them to an old beaver 
dam near the present east boundary line of Pleasant Town- 

■^ Honey Creek empties into White Itiver in the northwestern corner of .John 
son County. 

8 Eel River, in Greene County, nearly sixty miles southwest of the "Bluffs." 
» White River. 



i6o Readings in Indiana History 

ship. It was built across the outlet of a swamp, and made 
a pond of water a half-mile long and several yards in width 
at the narrowest places ; but at that time it had apparently 
been long deserted. 

Presently they reached the Hurricane, and there they 
established their camp, and, as this stream afforded the only 
running water between Sugar Creek and Honey Creek, it 
was surmised that here would be a noted camping-ground 
in the future, and the stream they named Camp Creek ; sub- 
sequent events proved the surmise to have been well 
founded. Slowly hewing their way through the woods, the 
axmen came at length to a deep swamp, some two miles 
west of the present east boundary line of the county, which 
was known in the early day as the Great Gulf. This was 
a mile in width and two miles in length. 

Two streams. Flat Creek and the Leatherwood, entered 
the gulf at its northern end, and their combined waters 
made Little Sugar Creek. Sugar Creek was already named 
when the Whetzels came. It was noted for the large forests 
of sugar-trees that grew at intervals on its banks, and to 
this circumstance, it is supposed, its name is due. The 
entire distance to Sugar Creek, after passing the skirt of 
rolling lands lying back from the river, is said to have been 
at the time a continuous swamp. The axmen were often 
"mid-sides in water" while cutting their way, and at night 
they cut brush and made heaps on which to sleep. 

Arriving at the Brandywine late one evening, the party 
encamped, when Jacob Whetzel rejoined them. After their 
scanty meal had been eaten, Jacob produced a bottle of 
peach brandy which he had obtained in Owen County, and 
over this the party pledged the memory of their wives and 
sweethearts at home. To the inspiration due to that bottle 
are the people of Shelby County indebted for the name of 
one of its prettiest streams — Brandywine. The name was 
given on that night. 

The provisions giving out, the party was soon after com- 
pelled to push on to the settlement, and leave the work un- 
finished; but in a short time Whetzel returned and com- 
pleted it. 



Coming of the Settlers i6i 

This work proved to be of great importance in the set- 
tlement of Marion, Johnson, Morgan, and Shelby Counties. 
It was known as Whetzel 's trace, and hundreds of the early 
settlers of central Indiana traveled along it in search of 
their wilderness homes. 

47. Migration to the New Purchase 

(From Earlif Reminiscences of Indianapolis, by .John II. B. Nowland 

[1870], pp. 12-1.5.) 

The New Purchase \vas a diamond shaped tract of land in the 
heart of Indiana stretching from Jackson county north to the 
Wabash and reaching the east boundars^ of the State near Portland 
and the west line about Montezuma. It was purchased from the 
Indians in 1818. Ownership of this tract by the Indians had held 
the settlers back, but as soon as it was purchased an army of set- 
tlers burst into it from all sides except the north. The center of 
attraction was the site for the new capital. Mr. Nowland was one 
among the earliest comers. His father, Matthias Nowland, had 
come with the commissioners who chose the site for the capital in 
1820. He at once returned to his home in Frankfort, Kentuclvy. 
and on October 20, set out for Indianapolis, arriving November 4, 
1820. The following is the story of the journey. 

In about four days we reached the Ohio, at the mouth 
of the Kentucky River. Here we encountered the first dif- 
ficulty of any moment. The ferry-boat had left tlie spring 
before for parts unknown. Fortunately the river was 
quite low, and the only possible way of getting over was to 
unload the wagon and take it to pieces, and ferry it over in 
a skiff a portion at a time. The running gear was taken 
over in this way and put together; then the large body or 
bed was floated over; then the furniture was taken over 
and reloaded, and the horses swam over ; and last the family 
were ferried over the evening of the second day, and 
camped for the first time in Indiana, on the north bank of 
the Ohio River. 

The ferryman at that time was George Ash, well known 
in frontier history, having, when a child, been taken prisoner 
and raised entirely by the Indians. He lived on the In- 
diana side, could scarcely speak a word of English, wore 

11—1643 



l62 



Readings in Indiana History 




Map of Indiana in 1818, Showing the New Purchase 



Coming of the Settlers 163 

rings in his ears and nose, and dressed in Indian style. 
Although he had a very good house, he had not a chair or 
bedstead in it, and lived in every way like a savage. 

From Ash 's ferry, as it was then called, we went by way 
of Versailles to Napoleon, in Ripley county ; this occupied 
two days. Although we had an open road, it was quite 
hilly and rough. At Napoleon we camped near the house 
of William Wilson, son of Isaac Wilson, living at that time 
in this place, of whom I will speak in another sketch. Here 
we bought corn, and had it ground into meal on a small 
hand-mill belonging to Mr. Wilson, This occupied one day. 
Here ended the road and commenced Berry's trace, which 
had to be cut out before the large wagon could get along. 

The first house from Napoleon was that of Montgomery, 
on "Flat Rock", about nine miles above where Columbus 
now stands. Here we were detained one day in conse- 
quence of the wagoner having foundered one of his horses. 
While here we were overtaken by Henry Bradley, liis 
brother William, and Bob Sacre, who had agreed to meet 
us at the mouth of the Kentucky River. This acquisition in 
numbers and strength, with three additional trusty rifles, 
was truly encouraging, and gave confidence to the whole 
party, especially to two young men, James Graves and Na- 
thaniel Jones, who had begun to show signs of fear soon 
after we crossed the Ohio River, so much so that my father 
was afraid they would take the back track. 

From Montgomery's the next house was that of Captain 
John Berry, father of Colonel Nineveh Berry, now of Madi- 
son county. Mr. Berry lived at the mouth of Sugar Creek, 
on Blue River, about three miles from where Edinburg now 
is. There also we stopped one day and replenished our 
stock of fresh meat by the purchase of a hog; and one of the 
party, I think Mr. Henry Bradley, killed a fine buck. My 
father had stopped at Mr. Berry's in the summer, and had 
formed quite an attachment for him. 

About the time we were there, a circumstance happened 
that gave name to a creek in that vicinity, which it now 
bears, and will, I suppose as long as water runs in its bed. 
Nineveh Berry, then quite young, had killed a deer; with 



164 Readings in Indiana History 

the deer on his shoulder and the gun in his hand, he at- 
tempted to cross the creek on a log; the bark of the log 
slipped, throwing Mr. Berry, deer and gun into the water. 
When he went home, he told his father the circumstances, 
who immediately named the creek Nineveh.'^ 

The next day we reached the house of Loper, where 
Berry's trace crossed that of Whetzel's^^ about three miles 
southwest of Greenwood. This place is now owned by 
William Law. It may be proper to say here that there are 
two places in Johnson county, known as where Loper 's 
cabin stood. This point is where his first house was. He af- 
terwards sold this place, and built another cabin about five 
miles east of it, on a creek known as Hurricane. We stayed 
at Loper 's on the night of the third of November. The next 
morning set in a violent snow storm. Mr. Bradley proposed 
to my father to take the family on horseback, and go on 
and have them a warm dinner by the time they would arrive 
with the wagon. This he did, and we arrived about twelve 
o'clock, the fourth day of November, at the house of that 
good old Samaritan, Isaac Wilson, which was on the north- 
west corner of the State House Square. About four 'clock 
Mr. Berry and friends came in with the wagon. 

It was on this evening, my little eyes (as old Johnny 
Ewing would say) first opened upon a live "Injin", of 
which I had heard so much. I had gone to the river with 
the teamster to help him water his horses. At the river 
one of the Hardings detained me to ask questions about 
the "new comers," what their names were, and where from. 
By the time I had answered the various questions, the team- 
ster had reached the wagon; the horse I was riding was 
very restive, and finally threw me. I jumped up, and fol- 
lowed along the path; when about where Meikel's brewery 
stands, I met a "big Injin." I don't know which was the 
worst scared, he or I ; but I suppose I was. I did not stop 
to ask him any foolish questions, or compliment him upon 
his warrior-like appearance; but I think I made about as 
good time between that and the wagon as there is on record. 

i» Nineveh Creek rises in the south part of Johnson County and flows southeast 
into Blue River. * 

'1 Whetzel's Trace, see above, selection 46. 



Coming of the Settlers 



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i66 Readings in Indiana History 

One yelp and a few jumps took me to the wag'on. What be- 
came of him I did not look back to see. And here com- 
mences what I know and have seen of Indianapolis. 

48. Thi'ough Storm and Flood 

(From Ili-storkul Skctcli of ■foJnixoii County, by David D. Banta [1881], 

pp. r)2-.54.) 

The following account was written loy Judge Franklin Hardin. 
He and his mother, Catharine Hardin, a widow, eanie to Johnson 
county in 1827. 

In the year 1827, the same widow and her boy, now two 
years older than when they stopped over night with the 
hospitable Morgan, together with two older brothers and a 
sister, constituting a family, left Nicholas County, Ken- 
tucky, with the purpose of making Johnson County, Indiana, 
their permanent home, to which a large part of tlie original 
family had emigrated three years before. 

^When the emigrants arrived at Shelby ville they were 
compelled to choose whether they would there take the road 
to "Indianapolis and then down the Bluff road, or take the 
road by way of Franklin, and the Madison and Indianapolis 
State road as far north as Whetzel's old trace, and thence 
west by Bell's. The Whetzel trace across Johnson Coun- 
ty was now impassable by reason of the fallen timber 
across its route, killed by the emigrant wagons and teams 
of former years, which bruised and cut the roots (of the 
trees). Whetzel's trace from Loper's cabin, at Camp Creek, 
to the Madison and Indianapolis State road, ceased to be 
traveled in the year 1826, being superseded by other roads 
and on account of fallen timber across it. It was never 
laid out by lawful authority and was never repaired. 

The road by way of Franklin was chosen, and, the 
weather being pleasant, the wagon rolled merrily down Blue 
River to the point where the road crossed the stream. It 
was late in the evening, when a terrible rainstorm came on. 
Not far from the river, in the edge of a cornfield, stood a 
deserted cabin ; possession of it was taken, and preparation 
made to spend the night there. The roof of boards was 
mostly gone, but still enough remained to afford partial pro- 



Coming of the Settlers 167 

tection. During- the whole night the rain continued to pour 
down unceasingly. 

Wlien the morning broke, we made an active move for 
Sugar Creek, thinking that it yet might be possible to ford 
it. Blue Eiver was in our rear, pouring down its angry 
waters, and Sugar Creek in front, whose condition was un- 
known. The road ran by the dwelling of John Webb, on 
the Shelby side of the line. Wlien Sugar Creek was 
reached, its angry waters were foaming along, dashing out 
over the low grounds and tilling up the bayous. It was the 
first rise after the summer and fall were gone. The trees 
had already cast their leaves and had colored the water a 
dark red brown. To add to our troubles the wind turned 
and blew from the northwest, bringing some snow. To ad- 
vance or retreat was equally impossible; we were in the 
midst of the waters and surrounded. A few stakes were 
hastily driven in the ground and bedclothes nailed to them, 
so as to inclose a space ten feet in diameter, and a fire built 
in the circle, thus securing a comfortable place. An elder 
brother was along, a man of shifts and expedients, who had 
already resided in the county for three years, and who had 
often swum its creeks and rivers. He sent back for an 
auger, to Mr. Webb, who kindly lent us the largest he had, 
three-fourths of an inch in diameter, and also loaned an un- 
steady water-craft, a mere trough, which would carry only 
three men at a time, by one or two lying flat on its bottom 
as ballast. There stood on the bank of the stream a tall 
hackberry tree, dead and recently stripped of its bark by 
woodcocks in search of worms. In a few minutes it was 
cut down, falling along the shore, and was soon cut up into 
sections of twelve or fourteen feet. These Avere placed side 
by side, and poles laid athwart them and pinned fast by 
boring through the poles and into the logs. Thus a raft 
was constructed in an hour sufficient for our purpose. 

' * Willis, ' ' said Mr. Webb, to his son, on his return from 
watching our motions, ''what are those people doing at the 
creek?" 

''Well," said Willis, "they are going to cross the creek 
on a log raft. ' ' 



i68 Readings in Indiana History 

' ' Nonsense, ' ' said the old gentlemen, ' ' it can 't be done. ' ' 

The wagon was nnloaded in a trice, and itself pulled to 
pieces. Then piling on the raft all it would huoy up, two 
or three hundred feet of bed-cords was attached to the raft, 
and two men mounted it armed with ten foot poles. The 
canoe led the way up the shore with the men and poles forc- 
ing it along, then resting against the shore the boat passed 
over, and now, when across, the work began in earnest. 
The ropes were pulled over, the poles were plied also, and 
the trip was soon made, and again and again repeated until 
all were over. The cattle and horses were forced in and 
swam over. There were some sixty head of sheep to be 
gotten across in some way; they were more troublesome 
than the rafting. We tried to get them to swim ; we forced 
them into the stream, but they would always return to the 
same side. Finally a happy thought came to our relief. 
The little craft was brought forth, and two sheep laid flat 
in the bottom and then we crossed and secured them on the 
opposite bank. Now began on both sides the most appeal- 
ing bleatings. A little force w^as all that was necessary to 
make the flock take to the water and swim over. The 
wagon was soon reloaded and hastily driven westward, 
while the angry creek was at our heels. 

On the first liigli ground, a quarter of a mile east of 
William Needham's and George Hunt's crossroad, we made 
our camp for the night. The roads henceforward exceed 
belief, the wagon often sinking to the hubs all the way to 
Franklin, where the streets were no better. At one and a 
half miles north of Franklin, a deserted hut was occupied 
for the night. At Franklin the writer mounted a horse, 
and struck out for White River Township for assistance, 
by way of the Indianapolis State road. There was scarcely 
a dry spot of ground on the whole route. At a small stream 
near David Trout's, ordinarily dry, the water was mid-rib 
to a horse, and other small streams crossed equally deep. 

Leaving the State road when Whetzel's old trace was 
reached, a long valley, lying north and south in its length, 
w^as crossed near William Law's, a quarter of a mile in 
width, which doubtless is a section of some extinct river. 



Coming of the Settlers 169 

The water could scarcely be crossed without swimming. A 
faithful dog had left the wagon and followed ; he had crossed 
so many streams and ponds by swimming, that here he 
could swim no more, and, getting in a dry position, refused 
to go further. After riding some distance to try him the 
writer returned and dragging the dog across the pommel of 
the saddle, carried him to a safe landing beyond. A few 
hours' riding over drier land brought the end of the jour- 
ney. Next morning assistance went in haste to the aid of 
the family. 



170 ' Readings in Indiana History 



48a. To Indiana 

(Fniui Paris (iiitl I'lxtni 0/ the West, by WiiJ.iA>r F. Coggeshall [1864].) 

By .John Finley [1797-1866] 

The emigrant is soon located — 

In Hoosier life initiated — 

Erects a cabin in tlie woods, 

Wherein he stows his househoUl goods. 

At first, round logs and clapboard roof. 

With puncheon floor, quite carpet-proof. 

And paper windows, oiled and neat. 

His edifice is then complete. 

When four clay balls, in form of plummet. 

Adorn his wooden chimney's summit; 

Ensconced in this, let those who can 

Find out a truly happier man. 

The little youngsters around him, 

So numerous they quite astound him ; 

Each wath an ax or wheel in hand, 

And instinct to subdue the land. 



CHAPTER VIII 

CLEARING THE FORESTS 

Next after the Indians, the forests were the greatest enemies of 
the settlers. Before a crop could be planted, before a pasture could 
be had for cattle and horses, before chickens could be raised, before 
the settler and his family could hope to be free of chills and fever, 
the forest must be cleared away and a little sunlight let in. Fre- 
(piently on the best land for cultivation huge oaks, poplars, gums, 
beeches, hickories, sycamores, three to six feet in diameter, green 
and soggy, mingling their tops to form a solid canopy fifty or one 
hundred feet above the ground, defied the would-be farmer. 
Thoughtless writers sometimes condemn our forefathers for destroy- 
ing these noble forests. If the settlers were to make this country 
their home it was necessary to destroy these forests, even though if 
standing to-day they would be worth millions of dollars. 

49. The Operation of Clearing 

(From Annals of Pioneer Settlers, by J. M. Wasson [1875], pp. 28-20.) 

The first thing was to get cabins built, and sometimes be- 
fore doing so they "deadened", as it was called. This was 
done by going over the forest tliey wished to clear with an 
ax and chopping around eacli tree. This stopped the com- 
munication of the sap through the body of the tree, which 
caused it to decay. That done, they would cut down what 
trees did not fall, cutting them into lengths of twelve or 
more feet, piling the brush in a heap. But there was an- 
other somewhat novel mode of cutting up logs. I have 
previously mentioned the fact that the earliest settlers were 
from slave States, hence, probably, the idea was suggested 
to them of having some kind of element to do the work for 
them in a cheaper and easier way than by use of human 
muscle. The operation was this : they placed smaller logs 
and dry rubbish across the log and applied fire to them ; 
this was called ' ^ niggering. " The writer has a recollection 
of seeing these white lords of creation paying much atten- 
tion to this *'niggering" process. Sometimes they would 

(171) 



172 Readings in Indiana History 

say after a social chat with a neighbor, or coming home 
from Friends' Monthly Meeting, ''I must go and right up 
my ' niggers. ' ' ' 

Another reason might be rendered for this mode of get- 
ting logs into several parts ; in those days the workers of 
iron had not come to Whitewater territory, and none to 
make axes. 

After they had got the thickest of the fallen timber cut 
and niggered off, then came the process of log-rolling. They 
would invite the neighbors for some distance around to 
come and assist in piling these logs together in large heaps. 
This would generally occupy a day or more. 

50. Cutting, Rolling, and Burning Ijogs 

(From an Hi-storical tSkctch of Johnson CoKiitii. liy DAvin I). Banta [ISSl], 

pp. 54-55.) 

With fire, ax, and maul, the men went into the woods and 
the work of destruction was begun. The writer can remem- 
ber when, of a still morning in the eai'ly spring days, the 
sound of the ax and of the maul was heard from every 
quarter of the compass, while the crash of falling timber 
was ever in the air. The trees were felled and cut into 
suitable lengths, and the green logs often lay so thickly 
upon a new field, tliat one could walk all over it by step- 
ping from log to log. With great expenditure of muscular 
effort these logs were rolled into heaps, and were then con- 
sumed by fire. We of to-day can form no adequate idea of 
the toil and weariness that log-rolling and log-burning 
brought to the first settlers. It was the custom for men 
whose logs had been rolled and fired, to ''right up" their 
burning heaps before daylight, and, after a hasty break- 
fast, reach the place appointed for their day's work by sun- 
up ; after laboring with a handspike until sunset, then go 
home and ' ' right up ' ' their own burning-heaps until ten or 
eleven o 'clock at night. This was the manner of the labor- 
ious lives of the pioneers for many years after the country 
was first settled, and from fifteen to thirty days ' log-rolling 
was the lot of every able-bodied man during the spring 
season. 



Clearing the Forests 173 

51. Log-Roiling — A Western "Frolic" 

(From Thwaites' Early Western Travels, V. pp. 2S2-28:i : account by John 

Bradbury [1817]. Copyrisht. By permission of the Arthur II. 

Clark Company. Cleveland.) 

Mr. Bradbury was a Scotch naturalist who traveled in America 
in the interest of science. He was a friend of Jefferson, who took 
an interest in his study of the botany of the West. He was kept in 
America during the War of 1812, being unable to get away while 
the war continued. The following description is taken from his 
book of travels, which he published on his return to England in 
1817. 

They have two modes of clearing land; one by cutting 
the trees around, so as to kill them, and afterwards clearing 
away the underwood, the quantity of which is very small: 
this mode is called girdling, and is only resorted to by those 
who, to use their own phrase, are " iveak-handed.' "~ The 
other mode is by cutting down the trees, dragging them into 
heaps, and burning them. This operation is almost always 
the subject of what they term a frolic, or in some cases a 
bee. 

It is necessary to remark, that in the early part of the 
settlement of a country like this, a great number of things 
are necessary to be done, which require the united strength 
of numbers to effect. In those parts, money can not 
purchase for the new settlers the required aid ; but that kind 
and generous feeling which men have for each other, who 
are not rendered callous by the possession of wealth or the 
dread of poverty, comes to his relief; his neighbors, even 
unsolicited, appoint a day when as a frolic, they shall, for 
instance, build him a house. On the morning of the ap- 
pointed day they assemble, and divide themselves into par- 
ties, to each of which is assigned its respective duty; one 
party to cut down the trees, another lops [cuts off limbs] 
and cuts them to proper lengths, a third is furnished with 
horses and oxen, and drags them to the spot designed for 
the site of the house ; another party is employed in making 
shingles to cover the roof, and at night all of the materials 
are ready upon the spot ; and on the night of the next day, 

'^ L e-, have Jittle assistance at command. 



174 Readings in Indiana History 

he and his family sleep in the new habitation. No remu- 
neration is expected, nor would it be received if offered. 

It is considered the performance of a duty, and only lays 
him under the obligation to discharge the debt by doing the 
same to subsequent settlers. But this combination of labor 
in numbers, for the benefit of one individual, is not confined 
to the newcomer only ; it occurs frequently in the course of 
a year amongst the old settlers, with whom it is a continued 
bond of amity and social intercourse, and in no part of the 
world is good neighborship found in greater perfection than 
in the western territory, or in America generally. 



CHAPTER IX 

BUILDING THE HOME 

The homestead in pioneer times meant far more to a family than 
at present. The mother and children were rarely away from it. 
In many cases children grew to be men and women without having 
been out of the neighborhood, or perhaps without spending a night 
away from home. For this reason their awkwardness and bashful- 
ness were amusing when they did get away. The young man 's first 
trip from home was usually down the river on a fiatboat. The 
young woman made her entry into society at the camp meeting. 
The following selections show that the pioneer home was a very 
simple affair to hold so many pleasant memories. 

52. The "Half-Face Camp" 

(P'l'dni .1 Pioneer Hii^torji of ludiana, by (\n.. Wili.iam M. ^()(■KR^■^r [10071. 

PI). KiU-lGl.) 

In most cases the first settlers were young men just 
married, wlio, with their young wives, their axes and their 
rifles and sucli other property as they possessed, came bold- 
ly into this dense wilderness. If they were so fortunate 
as to find any before them, they would stop a few days and 
select a place to make their home. They then cut the logs 
for their cabin and with the help of their new-found friends 
would carry the logs and put them up, covering the cabin 
with boards made with their axes for frows^^ and putting 
weightpoles on to hold the boards in place. Cracks between 
the logs were stopped by wedging in pieces of timber anc 
then filling it all full of mud. A hole of the proper siz< 
was cut in the side for a door and often the only door shut- 
ter was a bear skin. For a fireplace and chimney they cut out 
three or four logs, at the end of the cabin, the proper width, 
and built a three-sided crib on the outside, joining it to the 
building. Layer upon layer of mud was then placed on the 
inside of the crib, making the jambs'^ and backwall as high 

'^Prow, a clpaying knifo with blade at right auylcs to the handle, and in tlie 
snme plane, used for rivins,' clapboards, shinff'fs and tbr ]iko. 
1* .Tamb, sidcpost of the fireplace. 

(175) 



176 



Readings in Indiana History 



as needed to be out of danger of the fire, letting the smoke 
take care of itself. 

The floor and carpet were of mother earth. For a bed- 
stead they would drive a fork into the ground far enough 
from the end and side of the cabin, then put a pole in the 
fork and into a crack between the logs, thus making the 
end and side rails of the bedstead. After this they put 
other poles lengthwise as close as they wanted and piled 
fine brush over this, covering the brush with skins of an- 
imals. At this time the proverbial blue-figured coverlid, 




Pioneer Home on Patoka River. At this Site met the Founders of Jasper, 1830. 

From WiLson' s~_History of Dubois County. By courtesy of the author, George R. Wilson. 

made by their good mothers in their old North or South 
Carolina, Tennessee or Kentucky homes, would come into 
use with such other bed-clothing as they were fortunate 
enough to have brought with them. The deficiency, if any, 
was supplied by bear and deer skins. 

They made a table in the corner in the same way as the 
bed was made, only it had for a top thick boards made with 
an axe. For seats the backlog was used until it was 
wanted for its place to form the back of the fire, when its 
mate was put in and used for a seat until it was wanted. 
If they were fortunate enough to own an auger, three-legged 
stools were made. 



Building the Home 177 

Many of the first settlers for a few years hved in what 
was called in that day, a "half-face camp," made by put- 
ting two large forks in the ground the proper distance from 
a large fallen tree to make a twelve or fourteen foot pen, 
then putting a pole from fork to fork and other poles from 
that one to the log as closely as they w^ere wanted and then 
piling brush on this. They then rolled up logs to it and 
to the two sides as high as they wanted them, leaving the 
outer end open, usually facing the south. Large fires were 
made at this open end during cold weather, the occupants 
lying with their feet to it and their heads toward the large 
log. Usually these camps were made in the dry season and 
by the time the rainy season came on they would have plenty 
of skins to cover them and line the sides, thus keeping the 
rain and cold out and drying the skins at the same time. 

53. A Pioneer Homestead 

(From Sketclics of Mij Oirn Times, by Senator David Turpie, pp. 1-9. 
Copyright. By special permission of the Bobbs-Merrill Company.) 

The recollections of my boyhood all gather around a log- 
cabin which stood in the early thirties on the south bank 
of a small stream. This branch ran west from our place 
for about two miles to a point where it entered into Sugar 
Creek — whence the waters of both flowed together until they 
fell into the Wabash river on its eastern side, a short dis- 
tance below the old town of Americus. The cabin had been 
completed but a few days when we moved into it, and was 
built upon a tract purchased by my father, at the public 
land-office at Crawfordsville some years before. Our new 
dwelling was made of logs, laid up in the bark, and covered 
with clapboards. These clapboards, well laid, make better 
protection against rain and snow than the common shingles, 
which were used, at that time, very little in the country. 
The clapboards were riven from oak blocks with the frow, 
and shaven smooth on the upper side with a drawing-knife. 

The floors were made of puncheons — large slabs of hard 
wood, three feet wide, three or four inches thick, with a 
length of five or six feet; these were split from blocks of 
the i)roper length and smoothed on the upper side with the 

12— 1)4] 



178 



Readings in Indiana History- 



adze. The pimclieons did not rest on the ground, but on 
pieces of timber called stringers or sleepers, which were 
squared, leveled on the upper side, and joined into the 
lower logs of the house a little above the surface. The floor 
of the loft or attic-story of the main house was of sawed 
plank, closely joined together at the edges. The doors and 
windows were fitted into their places in the wooden walls 
more neatly than one would now suppose it could be done 
with such materials. The cracks between the logs and 
around the frames of the different openings were chinked, 




A Cabin iu the Clearing 

From History of Dubois County, by Gearge R. Wilson. 



that is, filled with small pieces of wood fastened with wedges 
or nails, and then carefully plastered with clay until the 
crevices were closed. 

The chimney and fireplace were prominent features and 
were of large dimensions. A man might enter the chimney 
from the hearth with slight stooping. The hearth and the 
bottom of the fireplace were of beaten clay tamped down 
heavily with the maul. The front of the fireplace was ten 
feet wide, the back six feet ; the f orestick and backlog of the 
winter fire were of corresponding size and length. The 
chimney was built of split laths and clay-plaster, both 



Building the H(3me 179 

specially prepared for the j)iirpose. Our cliimney was de- 
signed and built by an artist, then called a chimney- witch, 
one quite noted in the settlement, who had made it his study 
from long experience to determine just how the flue should 
be framed so as to draw all the smoke upward and yet allow 
the heat to be thrown forward into the room. It was not 
every one who could make a good cat-and-clay chimney, so 
called for the reason that in the first settlement of the coun- 
try, the down or fuzz of the cat-tail flag was used in mixing 
the clay mortar with which it was plastered, both inside 
and out. 

It was surprising how these primitive structures with- 
stood the action of fire. I remember having seen, from 
time to time, the charred remains of log cabins, destroyed 
by the flames, among the ruins of which stood erect the cat- 
and-clay chimney. 

Our cabin was divided on the ground floor by a close 
wooden partition, in which a door was hung, opening into 
a bed-room, lighted by a window in the west. The east end 
of the building w^as occupied by a large apartment called 
the sitting-room, which had a back and front door nearly 
opposite each other; it contained the mantel and chimney, 
and was lighted by a front window in the south. The loft 
or upper story was low; a man might stand erect in the 
middle of it, but at the sides not without stooping. It was 
divided by a partition like the room below. The west end 
was the spare bed and guest-room. In the east end of the 
loft the boys of the family slept. Our dormitory had a 
small window in it near the southeast corner, which we 
named Wake-up, because when the first light of the dawn 
appeared there, we were called and it was time to rise. 

The kitchen was a lean-to on the back or north side of 
the house at the west end, with a door on its east side and 
a window opposite. It was built, roofed, and floored like 
the cabin, but the story was lower. The kitchen-hearth and 
chimney were large and wide. The bright tin reflector for 
baking, the spit for roasting, the iron crane with its accom- 
paniment of kettles, Mud the spider, constituted the furni- 
ture of the kitchen, and although its utensils were not so 



i8 



o 



Readings in Indiana History 



numerous as at present tliey were well adapted for their 
several uses. We often spent a winter evenin;"^ in the 
kitchen, and were amused at the concert of the crickets on 
the hearth. Their notes were clear and cheerful, not loud, — 
we listened to hear them. This fireside music gave a very 
quiet and homelike presence to the scene. But the stove, 
the range, the furnace, and the register have long ago ban- 
ished the romance of the hearth, and these minstrels of the 
ingle-nook^ ^ have since disappeared from our homes. 




Friedman Pioneer Home, near Jasper. 

From Wilson's History of Dubois County. By courtesy of the author, George R. Wilson. 

Our house stood upon the shoulder of a bluff or small 
hill, which rose perhaps twenty feet above the level of the 
waters of the creek, and sloped down gently toward the 
north to the edge of the stream. Toward the east the hill 
ran down a short way to a little hollow or ravine, and just 
across this hollow or ravine were the stable and other out- 
buildings of the farm. The house and barn-lot being en- 
closed by separate fences, stood apart and left an open lane 
down to the creek or branch as we called it, by which the 
horses and cattle went for water. About forty acres of the 

1° Ingle-uook (Scotch), a nook or coiner by the fireside. 



Building the Home i8i 

land had been cleared and made ready for the plow, but the 
dwelling and other buildings were not within the line of the 
main clearing; it was better to have a lane between the 
small inclosures of the house and barn and the larger fields. 

Although there was no public road of any kind running 
by the house, yet it was easily accessible from the east or 
west; the branch made its approach from the north more 
difficult. The high woods in which we lived were open, 
singularly free from brush and undergrowth ; you could 
ride on horseback or drive a wagon in almost any direction 
without meeting any obstruction except the trees. A fallen 
trunk might here and there stop the way: sometimes this 
was chopped in two, and the ends thrown apart so as to 
allow the team to pass between them, but oftener we drove 
around the log rather than cut it. 

Our house-yard and garden contained about an acre, 
which was enclosed by rough split pickets or palings. The 
garden was soon plowed, harrowed, and planted with the 
ordinary vegetables. Their growth in tliis virgin soil was 
rapid and luxuriant, especially that of the vines. These 
had been planted by way of precaution close to the western 
boundary of the garden. They ran riot toward the latter 
part of the season; they climbed over the fence, spread 
away from it, and cucumbers, gourds, and squashes hung 
upon the palings outside. Besides the vines and vegeta- 
bles, my mother had a bed in the garden, prepared under 
her own eye, which she called the health-plot. Here were 
found such old-fashioned herbs as sage, mint, rue, cummin, 
lavender, anise, thyme and basil — each in its own row. The 
more hardy herbs, tlie hoarhound, catnip, tansy, and horse- 
radish were banished to the fence corners. The earth was 
not disturbed at all near the cabin. Nothing grew around 
the house except the grass, which was kept short with the 
scythe. The house-lot being cleared of weeds and brambles 
was soon covered by a turf of bluegrass, which seemed in- 
digenous to the soil. 

Our cabin with its lawn and garden, in the familiar 
patois^" of the country-side, was a right likely place. We 

^''Patois (pa-twii'), a simple, local speech or dialect. 



iSz Readings in Indiana History 

learned to like it very mncli. There were, however, several 
places better than ours — others not so good. In those days 
the cabin of the settler was sometimes built in the woods, 
with the trees standing all round it, uninclosed; the melon 
and truckpatch were in the rear, protected by a brush fence. 
Again you might find another cabin in the corner of a 
field, thus enclosed but kept otherwise without much atten- 
tion to its surroundings, weeds and brambles growing close 
up to the doors and windows, and in the outside corners of 
the cat-and-clay chimney. Sometimes the cabin stood in 
the middle of the field; and the owner would tell you that 
he had placed it there because he wanted to live close to his 
work. The corn-rows ran up nearly to the house, and in 
the late sunnner entirely concealed it from view; the foot- 
traveller might pass the place many times without seeing 
it, and if he wished to reach the house he must find the bars 
in the fence, there he would take a well worn path which 
led through the growing corn to the door. These cabins 
were exceptional. It is not to be understood, however, that 
their inmates w^ere in any way disparaged, forlorn or de- 
generate. They tilled their lands and gathered their crops, 
like their neighbors, and dealt with them on terms of en- 
tire equality. These people of the off-cabins were poor 
neither in spirit nor in goods. To use the phrase of that 
time, they kept a good house, lived in clover, and cared 
nothing for trifles. Their external appearances and sur- 
roundings were merely the effect of careless and contented 
indifference, and betokened rather the abundance of subsis- 
tence and resources than the lack of either. 

54. The Pioneer Home 

(From Jndiana Mmjazinc of Hi^^torii, X, No. '1; urticle by Frederick 

VOGEL [1912].) 

The location of the pioneer's home was a matter of no 
little concern. Good drainage and an abundant water 
supply were the chief considerations, as upon these health 
and life depended. If there was a creek in the neighbor- 
hood the settler usually pitched his cabin on a bit of ground 
bordering the stream, for in that way he had a natural 



Building the Home 183 

drainage. If no creek was near lie selected the highest and 
driest hill or knoll on his purchase, provided of course that 
it contained a spring of running water. Springs were more 
numerous then than at present. The thick, leafy carpet of 
the woods acted as a kind of sponge which absorbed the rain 
as it fell and later gave it up gradually to feed the numer- 
ous springs and streams, very many of which flowed all 
summer long. Around the cabin in all directions as far as 
the eye could see (until clearings had been made) were 
great green trees, lifting their tall stately columns to the 
sky. Their thick heavy foliage shut out the sunlight from 
the ground until frost laid bare the boughs. Underneath 
in many places was a dense thicket of spice, hazel-bushes, 
briars, young saplings, and other underbrush, and, lying 
here and there, were fallen tree trunks rotting into soil. 

Many of the early settlers lived for a few months, and 
some of the less enterprising even for a few years, in what 
was then called a half -face camp. This temporary home 
was hastily constructed to afford shelter to the family while 
they were engaged in the more necessary work of prepar- 
ing the ground and planting and tending the first crop of 
Indian corn. The structure was made by placing two large 
strong forks in the ground at the proper distance from a 
fallen tree to make a twelve or fourteen foot pen. Next a 
pole was placed from fork to fork, and other poles from 
that one to the log as closely as desired. Over these a thick 
layer of brush was piled to serve as a roof. The two sides 
were filled with logs which were rolled up. The fourth side, 
usually facing the south, was left open. During cold 
weather a great fire was made at this open end, and the 
family slept with their feet toward it, their heads toward 
the fallen tree. Skins also were hung at this opening to 
keep out the rain and cold ; often, too, the sides were cov- 
ered and lined inside with skins of animals. This was a 
crude shelter but it served the settler until he had the time 
and means to construct a better home. Abraham Lincoln 's 
Spencer county home was one of these half-face camps. 

The pioneer of the earlier period with his pressing needs 
was not able to construct an elaborate cabin. Later, when 



184 Readings in Indiana History 

he had accumulated some wealth, when his clearing had 
been extended and he had a stock of domestic animals and 
a supply of grain and food, he could turn his attention to 
a more commodious dwelling. This fact produced two 
stages in pioneer home building. 

The cabin of the earlier period was rough and crude. 
When the settler found a suitable home-site the cabin was 
constructed forthwith. After the logs had been cut, the set- 
tler and his friends dragged them together and put them 
into a clumsy, box-like, one-room structure. The roof was 
made of clap-boards rived from white oak, and the boards 
were held in place by weight poles. Cracks between the 
logs were filled with pieces of timber wedged in, and then 
the whole daubed with mud. A hole of the proper size for 
a door was cut in the side, and often the shutter was a bear- 
skin. The fireplace and the chimney were built on the out- 
side at the end of the cabin. An opening of the proper 
width was cut through three or four logs, then a three-sided 
crib was built up joining the building. The inside of this 
crib was lined with layer upon layer of mud to make it 
solid and prevent any danger of fire. The floor of the 
building was easily constructed — it was nothing more than 
mother earth. In this crude shelter the early settler, his 
wife and children, lived and laid the foundation for a great 
estate. 

After the settler had become established and the country 
had been more extensively settled, more commodious homes 
were built. A suitable location having been obtained, the 
work of construction progressed rapidly. Various woods 
were used — sugar-tree, maple, beech, ash, poplar, and 
hickory. Trees of uniform size were selected, cut into logs 
of the desired length, usually twelve to fifteen feet, and 
hauled to the chosen spot. 

On a day appointed the available neighbors assembled 
for the "house-raising," when fun and pleasures were 
mingled with the hard labor ; in fact such occasions were 
usually regarded as holidays. Each log was saddled and 
notched so that it would fit down as closely as possible. 
The foundation logs were carefully placed in a level posi- 



Building the Home 



■8s 



tion, and upon them the puncheon floor was laid. The 
puncheons were large slabs of hard wood, somethnes three 
or four inches thick, and five or six feet long. They were 
smoothed on the upper side with an adz, so that they really 
made a smooth, level floor. The logs of the wall were laid 
on and fitted together as closely as possible to lessen the 
size of the cracks and strengthen the structure. The chinks 
or places between the logs were filled with sticks split to 
fit the crevices as snugly as possible, and then were plas- 
tered over with tough clay or mortar. 




Log House of the Better Type. 

From Thw.vites' Early Western Travels. Copyright 1905. By permission of the A. H. Clark Co. 

This shut out the weather effectually. The rude logs 
often put out leaves and the cabin sometimes presented the 
appearance of a green bower. The usual height of the 
building was seven or eight feet. The gables were formed 
by shortening the logs gradually at each end of the build- 
ing as the top was approached. A roof was made by lay- 
ing stout poles suitable distances apart, generally two and 
a half feet, from gable to gable. On these poles the clap- 
boards were laid, and were fastened down by weight poles 
which were held in place by ''knees", pieces of wood fitted 
between the poles near the ends. 



i86 Readings in Indiana History 

The fireplace was formed either by leaving a place in 
the wall or by cutting an opening after the walls were in 
position. From this opening a three-sided enclosure of 
small split logs was built outward. Inside this enclosure 
was a similar temporary one, built with a space of twelve 
or fifteen inches between the two sets of walls ; and into this 
space moist clay was firmly pounded and left to dry. When 
the false wall was removed or burned away, the clay formed 
the protecting back for the fireplace, extending four or five 
feet up. Upon and above this was built the chimney, either 
of stone or sticks. Rived sticks heavily plastered with mud 
were the usual materials. The chimney was gradually 
tapered to the proper size for securing a good draft, and 
then built up until it was higher than the roof. The hearth 
and the bottom of the fireplace were made by filling in the 
triangular crib with wet clay to the level of the cabin floor. 
This was pounded with a maul until hard and firm, then wet 
with water and scraped with a wooden scraper. 

A few log cabins and, more often, the early taverns, 
were built two stories high, but this was not usual. 

The fireplaces were from five to ten feet wide and occu- 
pied almost one entire end of the house. They were often 
large enough to receive firewood six to eight feet long, and 
sometimes the backlog was as large as a sawlog. There 
was a reason for this, for the more quickly the pioneer 
could burn up the wood on his land, the more quickly he 
could have it cleared and ready for cultivation. While the 
cabin was being erected openings for the windows and doors 
were sawed in the walls. Slabs fastened to the ends of these 
logs by wooden pins served as frames for the openings. 
At a later period glass was somtimes used for the win- 
dows, but the usual material was greased paper; even 
greased deer-skin was sometimes used. The door, made of 
thick rived boards of the proper length, across which heavy 
battens were pinned, was hung on great wooden hinges. 
Sometimes it was made of clapboards pinned to two or three 
wooden bars. A heavy wooden latch was attached to the 
door. This latch could be raised from the outside by the 



Building the Home 187 

proverbial latclistring, which passed through a hole, and 
hung on the outside. At night the string was drawn in for 
security, but for neighbors and friends the latchstring was 
always on the outside. No people in the world were more 
generous, free-hearted, and hospitable than the early pio- 
neers ; and their hospitality and good cheer had with it a 
flavor that cannot be copied. 

Most cabins contained a loft or attic story which was 
reached by a rude ladder at the corner. This cubby-hole 
furnished a sleeping chamber for the boys of the family. 

Double log cabins were frequently built, especially in the 
older and more prosperous communities. It was really a 
combination of two cabins. The space between the two was 
known as the entry and was wide and roomy. This entry 
was roofed with clapboards, and its floor formed of clay 
and gravel beaten down hard and smooth. Since it was 
open at both ends, one could find there, even on the hottest 
summer day, a cool refreshing draft of air. Such a cabin 
was a long step in advance of the little one-room structure 
of the early days, so far as comfort and convenience were 
concerned, and, no doubt, many a pioneer housewife has 
looked with pardonable pride upon her splendid mansion; 
as a house of two or more rooms was considered particular- 
ly fine. 

The first cabins were constructed entirely without the 
use of nails or any scrap of iron. Perhaps the axe was the 
only tool used. But after the first years glass, nails, and 
other imported materials were commonly used, and, with 
the establishment of sawmills, sawed boards took the place 
of hewed logs. These later cabins, in comparison with the 
earlier ones, presented a very neat appearance with their 
smooth, even walls daubed with mortar, and their floors, 
frames, and finishing of yellow poplar. 

If the house of the pioneer was rough and crude, its 
furniture was in keeping with it. Everything was home- 
made, direct from the forest. Beds were made in one cor- 
ner of the room. Holes were bored into two logs of the wall 
at the proper height from the floor, and into them sticks 



i88 Readings in Indiana History 

were driven horizontally and at right angles, the ends of 
the sticks being supported by an upright stake driven into 
tlie floor. Sometimes cracks in the walls obviated the 
necessity for boring holes. Upon this framework was 
woven a bottom of withes, bark, or deerskin thongs to sup- 
port the bedding. A crude framework was often made of 
brush covered with skins of animals. On this bed was gen- 
erally found the proverbial blue-figured "coverlid" of 
Carolina and Tennessee housewives. Any deficiency in bed 
clothing w^as supplied by bear and deer skins. 

Guests were usually given this bed, while the family 
provided themselves in another corner of the room, or in 
the loft. When many guests were on hand at once all slept 
in the center of the floor. When bedtime came the men 
were requested to step out of doors while the women spread 
out a broad bed upon the mid-floor and put themselves to 
bed. Then the men were called in. The sleepers were gen- 
erally so crowded that they had to lie "spoon fashion," and 
it was necessary in addition for all to turn together. When 
anyone wished to turn over he would say "spoon" and the 
whole company would turn at once. 

Three-legged stools often took the place of chairs. Some 
of the more prosperous settlers possessed hickory chairs 
with splint bottoms. But stools and benclies rived out of 
logs ordinarily served for seats, especially at the table. 
Even the backlog of the fireplace served as a seat. Tables 
were often made in the same way as the beds — in a corner 
oi the room. For tops they had thick boards made smooth 
with an axe. Over the cabin door was the gain rack, made 
usually by fastening prongs of deer antlers into auger 
holes, or simply of forked cleats. On this the trusty rifle 
and powder horn rested. Hooks on which to hang clothes 
and other articles were fashioned from forked or crooked 
branches of trees. 

Above the fireplace was a shelf called a mantel which 
was often colored deep blue with a dye of indigo. ( )n this 
stood a candlestick or lamp, some tableware, possibly an 
old clock, and perhaps a few books. Often in the summer 



Building the Home 189 

two or three crocks planted with morning glories were 
placed on the shelf, and when the vines fell downward their 
leaves and the blossoms hid the old fireplace as effectually 
as a curtain would have concealed it. 

In the fireplace was the old-fashioned crane, sometimes 
of wood, sometimes of iron, and on this pots were hung for 
cooking. Forked sticks with pins stuck into the longer 
arms made pothooks, which were caught over a pole or 
''cross tree" that was fixed in the fireplace a safe distance 
above the fire, the pots being hung on the pins. An im- 
provement on these was the "trammel-hook," formed of a 
flat bar of iron, hooked at the end, while at the other an ad- 
justable hook could be raised or lowered as desired and se- 
cured by means of an iron pin inserted in holes that were 
drilled along the bar. With the advent of brick chimneys, 
of course, came the swinging iron cranes. These, set in 
iron eyes, imbedded in the masonry, could be turned freely, 
the long arms carrying the pots out over the hearth when 
desired. 

The four corners of the one-room houses were each 
usually occupied by some essential article of furniture. In 
one corner stood the large bed for the old folks, with a trun- 
dle-bed under it for the children; in another the heavy table, 
generally the only one in the house ; in another the rough 
cupboard, which contained the tableware, consisting of a 
few cups, saucers and plates standing on edge against the 
back to make the best display possible; in the fourth the 
old-fashioned spinning wheel, whose continual hum made 
music for the busy family. 

It was good to live in one of these simple homes. If the 
house itself was limited in its capacity, the hearts of the 
occupants were large and kindly. The following quotation 
fitly describes them: "These simple cabins were inhabited 
by a kind and true-hearted people. They were strangers 
to mock modesty, and the traveler seeking lodgings for the 
night or desirous of spending a few days in the community, 
if willing to accept the rude offering, was always welcome. 
As to how they were disposed of at night, the reader cannot 



190 Readings in Indiana History 

easily imagine ; for, as described, a single room was made 
to answer for kitchen, dining-room, sitting-room and par- 
lor, and many families consisted of six or eight members. ' ' 
The early pioneers could not have remained very long 
if it had not been for the abundance of game of all 
kinds in the forests. Often, for weeks at a time, they had 
no other food than deer, bear and wild-turkey meat. With 
this they frequently used a substitute for bread made of 
roasted acorns, pounding the mixture into a meal, of which 
they made ash cakes. This was very coarse fare, but the 
pioneer families subsisted very well on such diet until they 
could raise a patch of corn. Hard labor furnished ravenous 
appetites, and dyspepsia and other stomach troubles were 
unknown. 



CHAPTER X 

PIONEER FARMING 

The grreat majority of the settlers of early Indiana came with 
little forethought concerning their future work in the new home. 
They brought whatever implements and stock they had and could 
easily move. With these they got along until they could do better. 
One old settler put it this way : ' ' Wliat we failed to bring with us 
and were unable to buy, borrow, or beg, we got along very well 




Neckyoke and Plow. 

1"™!)! Thw.mtes' Early Western Travels. Copyright 1903. By special permission A. H. Clark 

Company, Cleveland. 

without." However, the land speculators M'ho advertised in the 
East usually made out elaborate tables showing how much money it 
would take to establish a farm in the wilderness. These estimates 
were always too low. On the other hand, the settler who had been 
through the process usually placed his values too high. The follow- 
ing estimates are from a circular of a real-estate agency opened by 
Curtis and Ellsworth at Lafayette in 1838. They also advertised 
farming machinery, including a reaper and a ditching machine. 



(191; 



192 Readings in Indiana History 

55. Cost of Preparing a New Farm 

(From Valley of the Upper Wabash, by Henry William Ellsworth [1838], 

pp. 49-51.) 

It will, doubtless, be expected by our readers that we 
should furnish a concise detail of the whole expense re- 
quired for the preparation of a farm for actual cultivation. 
This we propose to do. Our calculations will be made with 
reference to the prairies, but will answer equally well for 
timber land, by allowing from $10 to $12 more per acre, the 
sum requisite to clear the latter. Of the accuracy of the 
following estimates there can be no doubt, as their correct- 
ness is a subject of almost every day's experience. They 
were prepared by a late and lamented brother of the writer, 
who had just finished a prairie farm containing 800 acres : 

"The expense of breaking up the sod is $2.25 per 
acre. This is a fixed price, and certain calculations 
may be made upon it wherever the land may be lo- 
cated. But a difference will exist in the cost of fencing, 
according to distance the rails are carted. For the farm 
that I have just fenced the rails were hauled four miles. 
This distance will form the basis of my calculations. It is 
apparent that the cost of fencing will depend materially on 
the size and form of the area to be enclosed. An area of 
320 acres will cost much more than half the amount required 
to fence 640 acres. The four sides of a half section are 
three miles ; the two longest sides being one mile each and 
the two shortest a half mile each. The four sides of a whole 
section (640 acres) are four miles, requiring only one-quar- 
ter more fence for double the quantity of land. 

Twentv rails are allowed to a rod; this makes a 'Vir- 
ginia' or 'worm-fence'^' eight rails high. The eighth 
rail, called a rider, is elevated twelve or eighteen inches 
from the seventh rail and rests on crotches^^ eight feet 
long, crossing at each corner of the 'worm.' Rails of 
ordinary size laid in this manner make a durable and light 
fence, over and through which no cattle or stock can pass. 

1^ Worm-fence, an old-fashioned rail fence laid zigzag upon the ground. 
'* Crotches were made of two rails, resting against the fence, and crossing' at 
the corners of the worm'; sometimes called "staked and ridered." 



Pioneer Farming 193 

Estimate for Improving 640 Acres 

Four miles, or 1,280 rods, at 20 rails to the rod, 
gives 25,600 rails. Adding, for enclosures, 
cribs, etc., 1,400 rails, total of rails is 27,000, 
which, at $3.50 per hundred, is $945 00 

For one log house, well, and laying up fence 200 00 

For breaking up 600 acres, allowing the remaining 
40 for bad spots, enclosures, etc., at $2.25 per 
acre 1,350 00 

Allow for contingencies 30 00 

Amount $2,525 00 

Making not quite $4 per acre cost, including buildings, 
etc. 

Estimate for 320 Acres 

Three miles, or 960 rods, at 20 rails per rod, gives 
19,200 rails. Adding, for enclosures, cribs, 
etc., 2,300, total of rails is 21,500, at $3.50 per 
hundred, is $752 50 

For well, laying up fence and one house 175 00 

For breaking up 300 acres (allowing the remain- 
ing 20 for enclosures, etc.), at $2.25 per acre. . 675 00 

Add for contingencies 25 00 

Amount $1,627 50 

Making near $5 per acre. 

''The above calculations may vary a few cents per acre, 
owing to slight fluctuations in the price of laborers. One 
hundred acres will cost about $6.50 per acre, with the same 
buildings, etc., and eighty acres will cost about $8.30 per 
acre — the expense per acre increasing as the number of 
acres is diminished. It is found, in general, that the first 
two crops will pay for the land at government prices, fence 
the same and plough it, and on 320 acres build a house worth 
$200. The land will sell readily, if improved, at $10 per 
acre. ' ' 

13—1643 



194 Readings in Indiana History 

To the estimates given above should be added the origi- 
nal cost of the land per acre, when the whole amount will 
be as follows : 

First Estimate 

For the improvements on 640 acres, as described. .$2,525 00 
Cost of land, at $1.25 per acre'"-^ 800 00 



Amount $3,325 00 

Second Estimate 

For the improvements on 320 acres $1,627 50 

Cost of land, at $1.25 per acre 400 00 



Amount $2,027 50 

This will be found as accurate an account as can be given 
of improvements, upon the ordinary modes adopted in the 
western country. 

56. Prairie versus Timber Lands 

(From Valh'if of the Upper Wabash, by Henry William Ellsworth [1838], 

pp. 34-36.) 

One great cause of the immediate growth of the Wabash 
valley is the number of prairies, prepared, as it were, by 
nature for the plough. Thousands of acres can be found, 
even now, as well fitted for producing crops as the most 
highly manured and rolled lands of the old settlements. 
Such is its fertility that over 100 bushels of corn, 40 bushels 
of wheat, and 70 bushels of oats, are easily raised upon a 
single acre. Some individuals have been cultivating up- 
wards of 1,000 acres in grain, the whole of which is readily 
disposed of at the highest prices. Other tracts of similar 
extent are sowed in grass, and the hay sold at an immense 
profit in the southern markets. ^" 

The question of the comparative value of timber lands 
and prairie is decided, by important facts, in favor of the 

1" On April 24, 1820, tho Federal Go\ernmont fixed the price of public land 
at !^1.25 per acre. 

^o The southern planters were engaged in the production of staple crops, such 
as cotton, tobacco, sugar and tlie like, and purchased their foodstuffs and stock feed 
from the farmers of the northwe.'-'t. 



Pioneer Farming 195 

latter. The cost of a single acre of each will be the same, 
but the comparative expense for cultivation will be found 
as 1 to 3 in favor of the prairies. From $3 to $9 per acre, 
including the first cost, is an ample allowance for the com- 
plete arrangement and cultivation of a prairie farm, while 
the sum of $12 per acre is the lowest price for simply clear- 
ing timber land, which is left for many years encumbered 
with unsightly stumps and roots. 

The soil of tlie prairies, too, is generally more pro- 
ductive than that of the timber land. Portions of prairie, 
far remote from timber, can be easily supplied (with tim- 
ber) by sowing the seed of the black walnut or locust. Four 
or five years are sufficient to produce a growth of timber 
suitable for fuel and other purposes. Sod fences, with a 
hedge of locust or the hawthorn, are found to be better and 
far neater than the ordinary ones (fences) heretofore in 
use, while the recent improvements in ditching machines 
render their construction cheap and easy. Many of these 
hedges are already found upon the prairies, and they will 
soon constitute the outer and division fences of the exten- 
sive prairie farms. The surface of the prairies, from its 
smoothness, is admirably adapted for the successful opera- 
tion of numerous labor-saving machines of recent origin. 
By the use of the ditching machine before mentioned it is 
estimated that fences may be made upon the prairies at the 
astonishingly low price of fifteen cents per acre, while the 
ditch answers a most valuable purpose in draining moist 
lands. A more extended notice of this machine and the re- 
sults it must accomplish will be given hereafter. 

Another circumstance which renders the supply of tim- 
ber less necessary for the prairies exists in the inexhaust- 
il^le coal formations at no great distance from them. Such, 
at least, is the situation of the prairies contiguous to T^afay- 
ette, some of which are crossed for miles by the railroad-^ 
from Lafayette to Danville, where coal of the best quality 
is found in great abundance. 

-' •'Railroad" here refers to a corduroy wagon road. For a corduroy road sf^e 
selection 68. At this time (1838) but one railroad was in operation in Indiana. 
That was the road between Madison and Indianapolis, (if wliich only L'S miles had 
been built out of Madison. 



196 Readings in Indiana History 

57. Early Scientific Agriculture: Stock 

(From VaUey of the Upper Woliash. by Henry Wiluam Ellsworth [1838], 

pp. 39-41.) 

I plant my corn, generally, about the first of May ; it is 
laid by about the middle of July, and by the middle of Sep- 
tember it is sufficiently ' ' hard ' ' to commence the feeding of 
my hogs. At this time I purchase of those who raise them 
the stock required to eat off my corn; say about three and 
a half hogs to the acre, which is about the proper number 
to eat an acre of corn in thirteen weeks, the usual time al- 
lowed to make our pork from ordinary stock hogs. 

My course of feeding is this : My fields contain from 20 
to 30 acres each, all well watered. At the proper season I 
turn my hogs into a field, and after it is eaten off clean, I 
pass them into another, and so on, until I have fed off my 
crop, when my hogs are ready for market. The profits of 
the operation depend much upon the price and quality of 
the stock, and the price pork may bear in the market. But, 
for several years past, it has been an excellent agricultural 
business. 

When I first commenced feeding this kind of stock, a few 
years ago, I very naturally supposed that, by turning them 
into the field of ungathered corn great waste would be the 
inevitable consequence, and I had my corn pulled and fed 
it to them in a dry lot. But I soon became satisfied, by in- 
specting the operations of my neighbors, who had been for 
years in the business, that my labor and expense of feeding 
in this manner were entirely thrown away, and I abandoned 
it. Hogs gather corn in the field with little or no waste, 
provided the fields or lots in which they are fed are propor- 
tional in size to the number of hogs fed upon them, which 
should be in the proportion of 100 hogs to five or six acres of 
corn. The hogs should be regularly salted while feeding, 
and running water should be accessible at all times to them. 
By feeding in this way I find that my hogs improve more 
rapidly, and my lands increase in value yearly, although I 
have never put a shovelful of manure upon them. 



Pioneer Farming 197 

58. Hogs ! ! 

(From the Brookville American, November 29. 1834.) 

For the last three weeks our eyes have been greeted with 
scarce anything except vast droves of the swinish multi- 
tude. Within that time, from our own idea of things, and 
from the calculations of others, there must have passed 
through this place upwards of thirty thousand hogs; all 
wending their way to Cincinnati, the greatest hog market, 
we would venture to say, in the known world. All these hogs 
are from a small section of the State. We are told by the 
oldest settlers that there never before were as many hogs 
driven through this place in one year as have been in the 
last three weeks. Some days it seemed as if the vast arena 
of nature's storehouse was filled with hogs. 



CHAPTER XI 

DISPOSAL OP PUBLIC LANDS. 

The first serious ])usiness of the pioneer was ^\^th the land office. 
Land offices were esta])lished at Vincennes, Jeffersonvil]e,Brookville, 
Indianapolis, Crawfordsville, Terre Haute, Fort Wayne, Winamac, 
and Laporte. Besides these regrular offices, auction sales were held 
at various places. It was necessary to attend to this business 
promptly, lest some one else "enter" the land. There were many 
mistakes that could be made in entering land and many a worthy 
pioneer lost his home through such errors. However, (on account 
of the excellent system of surveys in Indiana) there were not nearly 
so many errors made in entering land in Indiana as in Kentucky. 
The govermnent was extremely easy and fair with its land buyers. 
Mistakes were corrected where possible. Money was returned where 
a correction could not be made. The land officer was a citizen of 
the neighliorhood and always favored settlers over speculators. 
Women often made long trips to the land sales to buy their 
homesteads. In such case no speculator dared bid against her. As 
soon as she named the legal price the salesman usually closed the 
bidding before any one else could make a bid. Speculators or their 
agents at land sales were viewed with hostile eyes by the settlers. 

59. Hon to "Enter" Land 

(From Thwaites' Earh.i Western Travels, IX. \)\>. ISO-lSl ; afcount by 

James Flint [1822].) 

Mr. Flint came over from Scotland in 1818 with a party of 
emigrants. Like all travelers of that day he made a tour of the 
West. At Jefferson ville, where this letter was written, he stopped 
a month or so and studied the country. He was a careful observer. 

The stranger who would go into the woods to make a 
selection of lands onght to take with him an extract from 
the land office map applying to the part of the country he 
intends to visit. Without this he cannot well distinguish 
entered from unentered grounds. He should also procure 
the names of the resident people, with the numbers and 
quarters of the sections they live on, not neglecting to carry 

(198) 



Disposal of Public Lands 199 

with him a pocket compass to enable him to follow the blazed 
lines marked out by the surveyor. Blaze is a word signify- 
ing a mark cut by a hatchet on the bark of a tree. It is 
more necessary for the explorer to be furnished thus, as he 
may expect to meet with settlers who will not be willing to 
direct him, but, on the contrary, tell him with the greatest 
effrontery that every neighboring quarter section is al- 
ready taken up. 

Squatters, a class of men who take possession without 
purchasing, are afraid of being turned out, or of having 
their pastures abridged by newcomers. Others, perhaps 
meditating an enlargement of their property so soon as 
funds will permit, wish to hold the adjoining lands in re- 
serve for themselves, and not a few" are jealous of the land- 
dealer, who is not an actual settler, whose grounds lie waste, 
waiting for that advance on the value of property which 
arises from an increasing population. The non-resident 
proprietor is (looked upon as) injurious to a neighborhood, 
in respect of his not bearing any part of the expense of 
making roads, while other people are under the necessity of 
making them through his lands for their own convenience. 
On excursions of this kind the prudent will always be cau- 
tious of explaining their views, particularly as to the spot 
chosen for the purchase, and without loss of time they 
should return to the land office and make entry. 

60. "Squatters" 

(From A Pioneer History of Indiana, by Cor.. William M. Cockrum [1907], 

p. 525.) 

For a long time squatters had no rights under the law to pro- 
tect their improvements. It was not until 1841 that the pre- 
emption law was passed to cure this injustice. Under it the squat- 
ter had a right to enter his lands at the legal price, and if a 
speculator bought them he was required to pay the squatter for 
improvements. 

The first settlers w^ho came to Indiana were here before 
the land was surveyed. They selected such places as pleased 
them and built their cabins with the intention of purchasing 
(of the government) the land when it was for sale. In most 



200 Readings in Indiana History 

cases the settlers had an understanding; with each other as 
to the land each wanted and mutually agreed to protect each 
other in these rights. 

Most of the settlers (later) secured (entered) the land 
which they had settled on, but there were cases where great 
injustice was done by those who were able and had the dis- 
position to be mean. This meanness was always resented 
by the old pioneers in a way that those who purchased the 
homes of others were looked on with contempt. 

A man named McCoy had squatted on a nice piece of 
land in the eastern part of Warrick county and had made 
substantial improvements, but up to that time had been un- 
able to secure all the money needed to pay for the first forty 
acres of the quarter section which he wanted. His wife 
went a long way to an uncle of hers and borrowed the bal- 
ance needed to make fifty dollars. The husband went to 
Vincennes to purchase the forty acres. 

When he got there he found that a man living about two 
miles away had purchased the land that his improvements 
were on. He went home with the sad news to his wife. The 
neighbors found out the mean treatment that had been im- 
posed on him, and a number of them went in a body and 
told the man that one of two things would have to be done. 
He had then and there to deed the forty acres to McCoy for 
the fifty dollars or take such a thrashing as he would never 
forget. They gave him two hours in which to decide what 
he would do. 

The fellow was so avaricious that it was hard for him 
to give up the nice property he had so wrongfully entered. 
But his determined neighbors were so threatening that he 
made the deed. McCoy paid the fifty dollars and finally 
bought the quarter section. This fellow was treated with 
such contempt by his neighbors that he sold his property 
and moved to the Illinois country. 



Disposal of Public Lands 201 

61. Land Speculators 

(From A Pioneer Histuri/ of Indiana, by Coi.. William M. Cockrum [1907J, 

lip. 527-529.) 

In the earlier days, land speculators had bought large tracts 
of land, thousands of acres, directly from the government, and 
had sold it at a good profit to the settlers. Under the lead of Wil- 
liam H. Harrison, the first delegate in Congress from the North- 
west Territory in 1799, the government decided to offer lands in 
half sections. This ruined the monopoly business of the big land 
companies. Their next plan was to send out agents who entered 
land that had been improved by squatters. This was stopped by the 
preemjition law. Their next scheme is shown by this selection. 

Along in 1832 there was a flood of land warrants^^ and 
land scrip-'' which had been bought up by an eastern syndi- 
cate.^"^ The syndicate had a large number of agents in the 
settling portions of Indiana and Illinois, selecting the land 
they wanted. There were usually quite a number of these 
agents together. If there were not a sufficient number of 
agents (for defense) they hired men to go with them so they 
would be in sufficient numbers to defend themselves. There 
was not thought to be much danger from Indians, although 
there was quite a stir in northw^est Indiana and many re- 
ports about the Indians. 

There was a neighborhood in western Montgomery 
county which had a fine body of land that fifteen or twenty 
men had settled on, and all of them had purchased part of 
the land that they wanted and built their cabins and cleared 
up a portion of the land, with a view of purchasing the rest 
of the land that each had selected. 

It was found out there was a number of men (syndicate 
agents) who had been at Crawfordsville hunting for lands 
which were located in neighborhoods that were being set- 
tled. This news alarmed the men who had settled in the 
western part of Montgomery County, and they sent several 

" Land warrants, (ortiflcates from thu governmont giving- the holders a i laim 
to certain amounts of public lands. 

-^ Land scrip, paper money of small denominations, whose value was guaran- 
teed by that of the lands. 

'■'* Syndicate, a com'bination of capitalists. 



202 Readings in Indiana History 

parties to find out what they could about these agents and to 
keep a watch on their proceedings. 

One of these spies learned of them (the agents) that 
they were intending to purchase a large body of land in the 
immediate vicinity of every settlement in that section of 
the country. He also learned they had already examined 
several pieces of land in the neighborhoods southeast of 
where he was located, and he further learned that in obe- 
dience to the instruction of their employers, every piece of 
land they recommended had to have their personal examina- 
tion and they had to describe it so minutely as to timber, 
springs, branches, hills and hollows, that it could easily be 
located. The spy learned further that these agents in- 
tended to be in his neighborhood at a certain time a few 
days off. He agreed to show them the land in his part of 
the country, telling them he was well acquainted with all the 
land in that section. Hurrying home, he told the neighbors 
of the danger they were in. They got together and can- 
vassed many plans of how to best get rid of these obnoxious 
agents. They sent to their surrounding neighbors and pro- 
cured all the help they could and determined to give the 
agents a scare, or try it. 

The day the agents went to the settlement they met their 
pretended friends, who w^ere showing them the lands out- 
side of their neighborhood. They had been some time en- 
gaged in going over the land, when behind the party several 
Indians were seen coming on their trail. This startled 
them. Soon on the north another party appeared, on the 
west another party — in all, thirty or forty full-dressed In- 
dians. Giving a blood-curdling war-whoop, the Indians 
started for the agents, who made a rush for the south to get 
out, as they were surrounded on every other side. The 
guide, lying down on his horse, led the party. The Indians 
were shooting and whooping at a fearful rate, the balls 
whistling uncomfortably close around their heads. The In- 
dians made it a point not to overtake them, but to keep up 
the running fight, and every now and then a party of In- 
dians would dash around the side as if they intended to sur- 
round them. This running fight was kept up for several 



Disposal of .Public Lands 203 

hours, the guide leading them out of Montgomery county 
and down into Parke county. They kept up a good gait 
until they reached Terre Haute. 

62. Land Sales at Crawfordsville 

(Fi-om Recollections of the Earlii Settlement of the Wahmh Valley, by 
Sanford Cox [1860], pp. 17-20.) 

The first part of the extract which follows was taken by Mr. 
Cox from "an old schoolmaster's journal" of 1824. The para- 
graphs following this were written in 1860. 

* ' Ckawfoedsville, Ind., Dec. 24, 1824. 

' ' The land sales commenced here today, and the town is 
full of strangers. The eastern and southern portions of the 
State are strongly represented, as well as Ohio, Kentucky, 
Tennessee, and Pennsylvania. 

"There is but little bidding against one another. The 
settlers, or 'squatters,' as they are called by speculators, 
have arranged matters among themselves to their general 
satisfaction. If, upon comparing numbers, it appears that 
two are after the same tract of land, one asks the other what 
he will take not to bid against him. If neither will consent 
to be bought off, they then retire and cast lots, and the 
lucky one enters the tract at Congress price — $1.25 per 
acre — and the other enters the second choice on his list. 

"If a speculator makes a bid, or shows a disposition to 
take a settler's claim from him, he soon sees the whites of a 
score of eyes snapping at him, and at the first opportunity 
he crawfishes out of the crowd. 

"The settlers tell foreign capitalists to hold on till they 
enter the tracts of land that they have settled upon, and that 
they may then pitch in — that there will be land enough — 
more than enough for them all. 

"The land is sold in tiers of townships, beginning at the 
southeastern part of the district and continuing north until 
all has been offered at public sale. The private entries 
can be made at $1.25 per acre, of any that has been publicly 
offered. This rule, adopted by the officers, insures great 
regularity in the sale; but it will keep many here for sev- 



204 Readings in Indiana History 

eral days, who desire to purchase land in the northern por- 
tion of the district. 

''A few days of public sale have sufficed to relieve hun- 
dreds of their cash, but they secured their land, which will 
serve as a basis for their future wealth and prosperity, if 
they and their families use proper industry and economy, 
sure as * time's gentle progress makes a calf an ox.' 

'*It is a stirring, crowding time here, truly, and men are 
busy hunting up cousins and old acquaintances whom they 
have not seen for many long years. If men have ever been 
to the same mill, or voted at the same election precinct, 
though at different times, it is sufficient for them to scrape 
an acquaintance upon. But after all, there is a genuine 
backwoods, log-cabin hospitality, which is free from the af- 
fected cant and polished deception of conventional life. 

' * Society here at present seems almost entirely free from 
the taint of aristocracy — the only premonitory symptoms of 
that disease, most prevalent in old settled communities, 
were manifested last week, when John I. Foster bought a 
new pair of silver-plated spurs and T. N. Catterlin was seen 
walking up street with a pair of curiously embroidered 
gloves on his hands." 

After the public sales the accessions to the population 
of Crawfordsville and the surrounding country were con- 
stant and rapid. 

Fresh arrivals of movers were the constant topics of 
conversation. New log cabins widened the limits of the 
town, and spread over the circumjacent country. 

The reader may be curious to know how the people spent 
their time, and what they followed for a livelihood in those 
early times in the dense forest that surrounded Crawfords- 
ville, 

I will answer for the schoolmaster, for T was there my- 
self. We cleared land, rolled logs and burned brush, blazed 
out paths from one neighbor's cabin to another, and from 
one settlement to another — made and used hand mills and 
hominy mortars — hunted deer, turkeys, otter, and raccoons 



Disposal of Public Lands 205 

— caught fish, dug ginseng, hunted bees, and the like, and — 
lived on the fat of the land. 

We read of a land of ''corn and wine" and another 
''flowing with milk and honey"; but I rather think, in a 
temporal point of view, taking into account the richness 
of the soil, timber, stone, wild game, and other advantages, 
that the Sugar creek country would come up to, if not sur- 
pass, any of them. 

I once cut cord-wood at 31:| cents per cord (and walked 
a mile and a half morning and night), where the first frame 
college^^ was built, near Nathaniel Dunn's, northwest of 
town. 

Prof. Curry, the lawyer, would sometimes come down 
and help for an hour or two at a time, by way of amusement, 
as there was but little or no law business in the town or 
country at that time. 

Reader, what would you think of going from six to eight 
miles to help roll logs, or raise a cabin? Or from ten to 
thirty miles to mill, and wait there three or four days and 
nights for your grist, as many had to do in the first settle- 
ment of this country? Such things were of frequent occur- 
rence then, and there was but little grumbling about it. It 
was a grand sight to see the log heaps and brush piles burn- 
ing in the night on a clearing of ten or fifteen acres — a Dem- 
ocratic torchlight procession, or a midnight march of the 
Sons of Malta, with their Grand Isacusus in the center, 
bearing the Grand Jewel of the Order, would be nowhere in 
comparison with the log heaps and brush piles in a blaze! 

But it may be asked, had you any social amusements, or 
manly pastimes to recreate and enliven the dwellers in the 
wilderness I We had. In the social line we had our meet- 
ings and our singing schools, sugar boilings and weddings — 
which were as good as ever came off in any country, new or 
old — if our youngsters did not ' ' trip the light fantastic toe ' ' 
under a professor of the terpsichorean art, or expert French 
dancing-master, they had many a good hoe-down on punch- 
eon floors, and were not annoyed by bad whiskey. And as 
for manly sports, requiring mettle and muscle, there were 

2' Wabash College, founded at Crawfordsville in 1832. 



206 



Readings in Indiana History 



lots of wild hogs running in the cat-tail swamps on Lye creek 
and Mill creek, and among them many large boars, that Os- 
sian's heroes and Homer's model soldiers such as Achilles, 
Hector, and Ajax would have delighted to have given 
chase to. 

The boys and men of those days had quite as much sport, 
and made more money and health by their hunting excur- 
sions than our city gents do nowadays playing chess by tele- 
graph, where the players are more than seventy miles 
apart. 




Priii'^ipal Meridian and Base Lines in the Old Northwest. 



63. How the Public Lands Were Surveyed 

(From Xilc.s' Registry, April 12, 1817.) 

Captain Jared Mansfield, U. S. A., succeeded Rut'us Put- 
nam, the first Surveyor-General, in 1808. It was necessary 
for him to survey the Vincennes Indian Grant of 1795, con- 
firmed in 1803. ^^ But as the tract was surrounded by In- 
dian lands, cut off from the other surveys and remote from 
the Ohio river, he was at a loss as to how to proceed. If 
he tried to survey the tract in conformance with the lines 

-" See map of Indian Cessions, p. 152. 



Disposal of Public Lands 207 

east of the Greenville Treaty line, he felt snre that when 
the lines were connected after the Indian title to the inter- 
vening land was secured there would be great confusion, 
and if he merely surveyed the tract as a unit he would de- 
stroy any uniformity of surveys in the Indiana Territory. 
He therefore decided to base the surveys upon great lines 
which could control all future surveys in that region. To 
this end he ran the Second Principal Meridian through the 
northeast corner of the cession. For a base line he used a 
line running from the westernmost corner of Clark's grant 
on the Ohio — the nearest surveyed land. 

This was the beginning of the combination of principal 
meridians and base lines which have been used in all later 
surveys. Both had been used before — Mansfield perfected 
the system and applied his brilliant talents to the astronom- 
ical location of the important points from which surround- 
ing surveys could be made. The Second Principal Merid- 
ian governed the surveys in Indiana and those in Illinois 
to the western boundary of the fourteenth range. West from 
that line to the Mississippi and Illinois rivers the surveys 
have been based on the Third Principal Meridian, which 
runs from the mouth of the Ohio river. 

The north and south lines are run by the true meridian, 
and the east and west lines at right angles therefrom, as far 
as practicable, in closing. But as the east and west lines are 
made the closing lines of the sections or townships, they fre- 
quently vary a little from those points, being run from one 
section or township corner to another. The lines are well 
marked by having all those trees which fall in the line 
notched with two notches on each side where the line cuts, 
and all or most of the trees on each side of the line and near 
it blazed on two sides, diagonally or quartering towards the 
line. 

At the section corners there are posts set, having as 
many notches cut on two sides of them as they are miles 
distant from the township boundary, where the sectional 
lines commenced. At the township corners the posts have 
six notches made on each of the four sides facing the lines. 
Wherever a tree falls exactly in the corner, it supplies the 



208 



Readings in Indiana History 



place of a post, and is marked in tlie same manner. The 
places of the posts are perpetuated thus : At each corner 
the courses are taken to two trees in opposite directions as 
nearly as may be, and their distance from the post meas- 
ured. These trees are called *' bearing trees" [witness 
trees] and are blazed on the side next the post, and one 
notch made with an axe in the blaze. But in prairies, or 
other places where there are no trees within a convenient 
distance for bearings, a mound of earth is raised at each 
corner, not less than two and a half feet high, nor less than 
that in diameter at the base, in which the mound-posts are 
placed. 



6 


s 


4- 


J 


2 


I. 


7 


s 


^ 


/o 


// 


/2 


18 


/ ^ 


/€ 


/^" 


/-f 


/J 


19 


2J 


2/ 


32 


23 


2i- 


30 


ze 


2S 


27 


2G 


zs- 


3/ 


32 


5J 


3^ 


36- 


56 






n€^NE^ 






Si 



A "Congress Township" and a Section Subdivided. 



At the section corners the numbers of each section, to- 
gether with the numbers of the township and range, are 
marked with a marking iron (such as are used in mills and 
warehouses) on a bearing or other trees standing Mdtliin the 
section and near to the corner, thus : A blaze large enough 
for the purpose is made on the tree,, and on tlie blaze the let- 
ter R is made, with the number of the range annexed ; below 
this the letter T, with the number of the township; and un- 
der that the number of the section, without any letter to 
denote it. To the number of the township the letter N or S 
is added, according as the township lies north or south of 
the base-line ; and to the numbei' of the range the letter E or 



Disposal of Public Lands 209 

W as the range may be east or west of the principal meridi- 
an. By proper attention to these numbers and marks a pur- 
chaser is enabled to know the quarter and number of the 
section he wishes to enter, and the number of the township 
and range in which it lies. . . . 

The quarter-section corners are established in the same 
manner that the section corners are, but no marks are made 
for the numbers of the section, township and range; "1-4 
S" only is marked on the post. 

The deputy surveyors are required to note particularly 
and to enter in their field books the courses and distances of 
all lines which they may run; the names and estimated di- 
ameters of all corner or bearing trees, and all those trees 
which fall in the lines, called station or line trees, together 
with the courses or distances of the bearing trees from their 
respective corners, with the proper letters and numbers 
marked on them; all rivers, creeks, springs and smaller 
streams of water, with their width and the course they run 
in crossing the line, and whether navigable, rapid, or other- 
wise ; also the face of the country, whether level, hilly or 
mountainous ; the kinds of timber and undergrowth with 
which the land may be covered, and the quality of the soil ; 
all lakes, ponds, swamps, peat or turf grounds, coal beds, 
stone quarries; uncommon, natural, or artificial productions, 
such as remains of ancient fortifications, mounds, precipices, 
caves, etc., all rapids, cascades, or falls of water ; minerals, 
ores, fossils, etc. ; the true situation of all mines, salt licks, 
salt springs, and mill-sites which may come to their knowl- 
edge. From the returns of the surveys thus made a complete 
knowledge of the country may be obtained, and maps there- 
of drawn with the greatest accuracy. The field notes of the 
surveyors, together with the plats and descriptions, made 
out therefrom, are filed in the office of the surveyor-general 
of the United States, or of the principal surveyors for the 
territories of Mississippi, Illinois, and Missouri. 



14—1643 



CHAPTER XII 
TRANSPORTATION AND TRAVEL 

The settlers paid very little attention to roads nntil they had 
opened their farms and had begun to raise more corn and other 
produce than they needed. The first problem in road-building was 
to reach a navigable stream. I'or this purpose State roads were 
opened into the interior from such towns as Madison, New Al- 
bany, Leavenworth, Troy, and Evansville. The farmers noted in 
tlie papers that corn on tlie seaboard was worth 50 cents per bushel 
while they could get only 15 cents. The great Whig party secured 
its support in the West by promising to buikl pikes or canals 
across the country so that the farmers could get to market. 




Early Means of Transportation. 

(From Histitri/ of Dubois Cuiiiili/, by (Jeo. R. A\'ils(in flOlO], p. 147. P.y iiormission 

of the author.) 

64. Old Thoroughfares in Indiana 

(From Indiana Magazine of Tlistorii. Ill, pp. 12-20; article h.v (Jeorge S. 

COITMAN [1907].) 

Tlie first roads of Indiana, while somewhat remote from 
present interests, have yet some relation to tlie after his- 
tory of the State, besides possessing a certain historic in- 
terest of their own. Of these primitive ways for travel the 
earliest were the Indian trails — narrow, winding routes 



(210) 



Transportation and Travel 211 

beaten by many feet traveling in single file, and akin to the 
paths made by animals. 

If this system of Indian trails could be restored in a 
chart we would be surprised, no doubt, to find what a net- 
work it formed, reaching over the country in various direc- 
tions. No such restoration would be possible now, however, 
for, though there are many allusions to them in our local 
histories, what information we have about these old trails 
is scattered, meager, and indefinite. About all we know is 
that the various tribes and bands of Indians occupied each 
its own territory, usually along the valleys of the prin- 
cipal rivers, and that they visited to and fro miore or less 
for the purpose of counsel and other reasons. Between 
the tribes of this region little hostility is recorded, and there 
seems to have been considerable friendly intercourse and 
formal visiting among them. Following the rivers from 
town to town, and across from valley to valley, their paths 
can be traced. The Miami town of Ke-ki-on'-ga, where Fort 
Wayne now stands, was, from its command of the Wabash 
portage, the converging point of many trails. Little Tur- 
tle, in his speech to Anthony Wayne at the treaty of Green- 
ville, refers to the place as ' ' that gate through which all the 
good words of our chiefs had to pass, from the North to 
the vSouth, and from the East to the West." 

At the junction of Fall creek and White river several 
paths seem to have met, by reason of a good ford across 
the river that existed there. Such at least has been affirmed 
by the late J. H. B. Nowland, a very early pioneer of In- 
dianapolis, who has told the writer of several trails — one 
from Vincennes, one from the falls of the Ohio, one from the 
Whitewater, and others from the upper Delaware towns on 
White river and the Pottawattomie and Miami towns on the 
Wabash, all of which converged at this point. The one 
westward from the Wliitewater valley ran about where the 
Pennsylvania railroad now has its right-of-way. That 
from the Ohio falls pai-alleled the present Jeffersonville 
railroad. The latter route was traveled by all the Potta- 
wattomies, Miamis and Delawares of the upper Wabash and 
White rivers in their excursions to the Kentucky hunting 



212 Readings in Indiana History 

grounds. After crossing the White river ford it sent off 
branches to the towns of those tribes. 

One of the earliest wagon ways out of Indianapolis was 
the old Centerville road, which led to Wayne county before 
the coming of the National Road, and was laid out on the 
Whitewater trail above referred to. Mention may be found 
here and there of other roads that were similarly deter- 
mined. The earliest pioneers were benefited directly by 
the aboriginal trails ; for not only did they follow them from 
one place to another through the otherwise trackless wilder- 
ness in search of desirable regions, but their rude "traces" 
for subsequent ingress and egress were frequently only an 
improvement on the red man 's narrow footpath. 

Perhaps it is not venturing too much to say that they 
were at times an influence in the locating of white settle- 
ments. For instance, the first settlers on the spot where 
Indianapolis now stands were led hither by the Whitewater 
trail. When the commissioners appointed by the Legisla- 
ture came to locate the capital, the presence of the squat- 
ters at the mouth of Fall creek was undoubtedly a factor 
in determining the choice of that spot; and so it might be 
possible to reason out a relation between this obscure path 
through the forest primeval and the exact location of the 
State's capital. 

It was not until four years after Indiana had been ad- 
mitted as a State that any definite system of roads was pro- 
jected within her borders. Prior to that general laws had 
been framed touching the opening of highways. For with 
the first tides of immigration, of course, came the question 
of intercommunication. But they provided only for the 
opening of local roads on petition. In those first years there 
was little pressing need for other than local roads. Indi- 
ana was strung along the Ohio and the Wabash rivers, 
which were the generally used, natural highways. Ver- 
sailles, Vernon and Brownstown, but a few miles back from 
the Ohio, were, until 1820, on the extreme frontier, the vast 
country on the north and west of them being an unbroken 
wilderness, and the principal centers were contiguous to 
one or the other of the two rivers named. 



Transportation and Travel 213 

In 1820, however, there arose new reasons for extensive 
roadmaking. The great tract known as the "New Pur- 
chase," comprising all the central portion of the State and 
as far north as the upper Wabash, was thrown open to set- 
tlers in that year. Somewhere in the heart of this territory 
the seat of government was to be located at once, and it was 
obvious that the capital and the settlers who would people 
the newly acquired tract must have some way of reaching 
the older part of the country and the markets. This would 
seem to be the explanation of the sudden legislation on 
State roads that appears in the statutes at this time. In 
1820 not less than twenty-six roads were projected, and as 
many sets of commissioners appointed to view the land and 
mark out the routes. These roads not only connected the 
older towns of the State, but extended into the interior. 
Five were to lead to the proposed capital, and one was from 
Lawrenceburg to Winchester, this latter being by a subse- 
quent act extended to Fort Wayne. During the next ten 
years there was repeated and lengthy legislation on this 
subject of state roads, showing the great importance of 
highways in the early days of the new commonwealth. Many 
other roads were added to the original system, some were 
relocated, and there were various modifications. In the 
main, however, the first ideas were carried out, and on a 
road map of 1835, now existing, at least two-thirds of the 
State is pretty well crisscrossed with highways other than 
the local or country roads. 

The revenue and labor for the opening and maintaining 
of these roads were derived from three sources. The first 
was knowm as the three per cent, fund, and was a gift from 
the general government. Out of the sales of the public 
lands five per cent, was set aside for the purposes of inter- 
nal improvement. Of this two per cent, was to be spent by 
the United States on works of general benefit — such, for ex- 
ample, as the National Road — and the remaining three per 
cent, was given to the State for improvements within her 
borders. Into this fund there was paid altogether the sum 
of $575,547.75. A special agent was appointed for disburs- 
ing the fund. 



214 Readings in Indiana History 

Another source of revenue was derived from the ' ' road 
tax" levied upon real estate. Farm lands were assessed 
*'an amount equal to half the amount of State tax," and 
town lots ' ^ an amount equal to half the county tax. ' ' Non- 
resident land-owners were assessed an amount equal to half 
of both the State and the county tax. Such road tax the 
land-owner was entitled to pay by working on the road. 

The third source of revenue was a labor requirement, 
which compelled all male inhabitants between the ages of 
twenty-one and fifty, except jjreachers and certain other 
persons, to work on the roads two days in each year, when 
called out, or pay an equivalent thereof. In the New Pur- 
chase, where the labor necessary to make roads was greater 
than farther south, the demand was for four days each year, 
but this provision was repealed in 1827. 

05, The "Buttalo Trace" 

(From .1 flistdiji of Diihoix Coinita. by (Jeorge R. Wilson [19101. w. 27-28.) 

The "Buffalo Trace," now almost obliterated, was such 
an important factor in the settlement, not only of Dubois 
county, but of other counties in southern Indiana, that it 
deserves more than a passing notice. 

Why the buffalo is seen upon the seal of the State of In- 
diana is easily understood when one recalls that buffaloes 
lived in countless numbers in Indiana. They made several 
paths through the State. One trail passed through Du- 
bois county. Of this one we shall write. The old ' ' Buff"al() 
Trace" was so important in pioneer days that William Rec- 
tor was employed to make a survey of the east end of it, 
which he did in July, 1805. The old trace from the prairies 
of Illinois to the blue grass regions of Kentucky crossed 
White river at Decker's ferry, northwest of Petersburg, 
entered Dubois county near the Miley schoolhouse, passed 
Fort McDonald, went on south of Hayville, tlience east, near 
Ludlow schoolhouse, to Union Valley, and entered Orange 
county within a hundred yards of the Southern railroad 
track in Columbia township. It passed near French Lick 
and Paoli. In Dubois county the trace practically paral- 



Transportation and Travel 



215 



lelecl what is now called ' ' Buckingliam 's Base Line." Mil- 
burn's spring, in Columbia townsliip, and Fort McDonald, 
in Boone township, were camping grounds along this trace. 
This old ''ButTalo Trace" is also known as the ''Mud 
Holes," ''Governor's Trace," "Kentucky Eoad," "Louis- 
ville Trace" and " Vincennes Trace," but the primary cause 
of the trail was the buffalo. Its trail was always near 
water or wet places. 




The Old Indian Ford at Jasper. 

(From Ilistorij of Bu'bois County, by Geo. R. Wilson [19321, p. 150. I'.y piTiiiission 

of the author.) 



The buffalo wallows along this trace caused it to be 
called, by some, the "Mud Hole" trace. Today a small 
branch of Mill creek bears the name of ' ' Mud Hole ' ' creek. 
General Harrison changed the trace in some places, in 1801, 
and it is sometimes referred to as the "Governor's Trace." 
On one of his trips over this trace General Harrison lost his 
gold watch, which was found some years later. 

David Sanford, the government surveyor, who surveyed 
toAvn one, south, range five, west, in Dubois county, in 1805, 
located the "Mud Holes" at about one hundi-<Ml rods east 



2i6 Readings in Indiana History 

of the northwest corner of section three, that is, south of 
where Fort McDonald stood, and near Sherritt's graveyard. 

In 1801 a traveler along the "Buffalo Trace," through 
what is now Dubois county, would have noticed here and 
there big circular patches where the grass was greener, 
thicker, and higher than anywhere else around. Those 
curious circles of superior grass were due to a cause that 
will never be seen again. They were the existing reminders 
of the buffalo days. Those rank and verdant patches of 
grass marked spots where once common buffalo wallows 
were familiar and often welcome landmarks in the forest. 
Where a little stagnant water had collected, the ground be- 
ing soft uuder the short grass, it was easy for the buffalo to 
make a mud puddle in which he could cool himself. 

To accomplish this a male buffalo — always a male buf- 
falo made the wallow — would drop on one knee, plunge his 
horn, and at last his head into the earth, and make an ex- 
cavation into which the water slowly filtered. Then, throw- 
ing himself on his side as flat as he could, he rolled vigor- 
ously around, ripping up the ground with his horns and 
hump, sinking himself deeper and deeper, and gouging his 
wallow out larger until it was of dimensions to suit his pur- 
pose. The excavation would gradually fill with water until 
the buffalo was entirely immersed, the water and mud, 
mixed to the consistency of mortar, covering him from his 
head to the tip of his tail. 

A buffalo wallow was usually about twelve feet in diam- 
eter, and from two to three feet deep, and a male buffalo 
would complete one in half an hour. Sometimes there 
would be fifty or a hundred waiting for the leader to get 
tlirough with his bath so they could have a chance at it. He 
usually took his time in wallowing in the mud hole. When 
it suited him to come out, a frightful looking monster, drip- 
ping thick with ooze from his huge body, the male that had 
won the right to be next in rank entered the wallow for his 
bath. 

Over the "Buffalo Trace," through Dubois county, 
many thousands of buffaloes passed annually. They 
crossed the Ohio river at the falls. From the Ohio river to 



Transportation and Travel 217 

''Big Bone Lick" and the "Blue Licks," in Kentucky, these 
animals had beaten a path wide enough for a wagon road. 
In Dubois county the buffalo 's presence was only transient. 
He was seen going or coming, and then not later than 1808. 
Towards the close of the eighteenth century a very cold win- 
ter, continuing several months, froze all vegetable growth, 
starved the noble animals, and the herds never regained 
their loss. 

Their path made it easier for the pioneers to travel in 
the forests, and accounts for the settlement in this county 
first appearing in the northern part. Notice that the first 
white man's path into the country was not paralleled by 
rail until more than a century had passed away. The ' ' Buf- 
falo Trace ' ' was trodden from time almost immemorial. In 
turn the buffalo, Indians, "coureurs du bois," priests. 
French salt hunters, pioneers, soldiers^ settlers, governors, 
and mail carriers trod their weary way. Over this ' ' Buffalo 
Trace" the government mails were first carried in Dubois 
county. The first mail was carried over it on foot by Ma- 
thias Mounts. George Teverbough, a noted pioneer hunter, 
also carried mail on foot over this trace once a week. One 
week he traveled from Louisville to Vincennes and reversed 
his steps the next week. Lieutenants of the "Shawnee 
Prophet" trod the "Buffalo Trace" before 1811, inciting 
the Piankishaw Indians against the whites. Pike county, 
as well as Dubois county, was first settled along this trace. 
Pike county at "White Oak Springs" and Dubois county 
at Sherritt's graveyard. 

66. Two Improved Highways 

(From Internal Improvements in Early Indiana, by Logan Esarey [10121. 

pp. 53-60.) 

(The National Road) 

As early as 1802 the subject of a national road had occu- 
pied Congress, and in the bill admitting Ohio five per cent, 
of the proceeds of the public land sales in that State was 
set aside as a fund for building roads by which emigrants 
might reach the West. Four years later a bill passed Con- 
gress for a survey of a road from Cumberland, Maryland, 



21 8 Readings in Indiana History 

to the Ohio. The route followed the old Braddock Trail 
nearly to the Battleground, and then turns to the west, 
striking the Ohio at Wheeling. 

It is not usually realized by Americans that this road is 
the greatest wagon road in the world. It was surveyed 
eighty feet in width, the timber was then grubbed and the 
ground graded. Culverts and bridges were built of- cut 
stone, and at last a track in the center, thirty to forty feet 
wide, was macadamized with ten inches of stone. Two six- 
horse teams could race abreast on this road. In 1818 it 
reached Wheeling, in 1833 Columbus, Ohio, and in 1852 Van- 
dalia, Illinois. During its building it was the chief event 
in Ohio and Indiana. The author and promoter of this road 
was the Swiss, Gallatin, Jeiferson's Secretary of the Treas- 
ury. Jefferson favored the project, but was so tender on 
the States ' rights theory that, before work could begin, per- 
mission had to be secured from the sovereign States of 
Maryland, Virginia, and Pennsylvania. 

From six to twelve independent stage lines ran on this 
road, and a score of companies were in the transportation 
business. The schedule of the stage was thirty hours from 
Washington to Wheeling, forty-five hours to Columbus, 
sixty hours to Indianapolis, and seventy-five hours to Van- 
dalia. Only thoroughbred Virginia horses were used on 
the best lines, and the sound of the bugle was as certain an 
indication of the time of day as the passing of passenger 
trains on the railroads at the present time. The coachman 
was a man of consequence along the route, almost an idol 
for the boys. To see him dash up to a post, throw the lines 
to the stable boys, tell the latest news from the East while 
teams were changing, then break away at a fifteen-mile clip, 
was enough to attract all the youngsters for a mile or two. 
The driver usually courted this admiration, and never 
missed a chance to take a boy on the seat with him — a favor 
the boy paid for with apples and cider, and remembered 
with jjride during the rest of his life. A guild of wagoners 
soon grew up in the freight business. These men were well 
known from Baltimore to Columbus and thoroughly re- 
liable. 



Transportation and Travel 21Q 

Tliirty-four different acts of Congress show liow im- 
portant the road was in a public way. Its cost was $6,824,- 
919, but it was never completed. It was surveyed and 
opened to Vandalia and St. Louis, but never macadamized 
beyond the western boundary of Indiana. Congress did not 
over-estimate its value. It was a powerful agent for union, 
and a material symbol of its power and usefulness. It 
bound the East and West together and brought tliem three 
days' travel nearer to each other. During the twenty years 
of its greatness a steady stream of "movers," with their 
covered wagons and droves of cattle, hogs, and sheep, 
poured into Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois. For months at a 
time there was no moment in the daytime when a family 
wagon was not in sight. At night the road appeared like 
the picket line of an army. Having traveled over this road, 
the memory of it lingered long and came back especially 
vivid as one traveled over the corduroy or mud roads of 
early Indiana. Most of the settlers of central and eastern 
Indiana were familiar with "the old pike." Even yet the 
expression "hit the pike" reminds us of the time when to 
' ' hit the pike ' ' meant to leave the country. 

(The Michigan Road) 

The treaty between the Pottawattomic Indians and 
United States commissioners, made October 16, 1826, on the 
Wabash near the mouth of the Mississinewa, in Miami 
County, ceded to the State of Indiana what was considered 
a sufficient amount of land to build a pulilic highway from 
Lake Michigan to the Ohio. This road was to be one hun- 
dred feet wide, and to this right-of-way the Indians added 
the further gift of contiguous land for every mile. Where 
the contiguous land did not belong to the Indians — all soutli 
of the Wabash — Indiana was to select a section of unsold 
land for every mile of road. 

By act of the Legislature, 1828, John I. Neely, of Gibson, 
Chester Elliott, of Warrick, and John McDonald, of Da- 
viess, were appointed commissioners to lay down the road 
from Lake Michigan to Indianapolis. They were instructed 
to select the best natural harbor on the lake; or, in the ab- 



220 Readings in Indiana History 

sence of a good one, the best place to construct an artificial 
harbor. Tlie route from Logansport to the lake offered 
considerable difficulty. The terms of the grant were for a 
direct route. This would lead through the Kankakee 
swamps, where nobody lived, and where it would be very 
costly to build a road. To avoid this the road would have 
to run from Logansport due north to the south bend of the 
St. Joseph river, thence west to the lake. The point where 
Michigan City now stands — the mouth of Trail Creek — was 
selected for the northern terminus. Then two complete 
sets of field notes and plats were made — one via South 
Bend, the other through the Kankakee fiats. The party 
spent one hundred and thirty days in the northern forests, 
for which each person received about two hundred dollars. 
Extra hands were paid seventy-five cents per day and the 
surveyor-in-chief received two dollars. The road was di- 
vided into three sections. The first, from Madison to In- 
dianapolis, was under the management of Daniel Kelso ; 
the second reached Logansport and was under the super- 
intendence of Horace Bassett ; the last was managed by 
Polke himself. During 1832 lands were placed on sale at 
Laporte. Scrip was accepted in payment for all lands. The 
road was cleared one hundred feet wide; thirty feet was 
grubbed and graded. By 1836 it was clearly ascertained 
that this made a poor road. In the worst places logs were 
piled in crosswise and covered with sand. Many bridges 
were washed away every year by the streams. Althougli 
the road was used enormously north of Indianapolis, it was 
anything but satisfactory. It passed through fourteen 
counties and Avas used by the inhabitants of thirty-five in 
going to the capital. The Assembly at almost every ses- 
sion had to make an appropriation for repairs. 

67. A Plank Road 

(From The WahasJi, or Adventures of an English (Icntlcinan's Faniilij in 
the Interior of America, by J. Richard Beste [1855], I, pp. 298-299.) 

Mr. Beste and his family, consisting of his wife and eleven 
yoimg children, came over from England in 1850. Like all visitors 
to America before the Civil War they had to make a tour of the 



Transportation and Travel 221 

West. They reached Indianapolis by i-ail from Madison. After 
staying in the capital a month, they bought a team of horses and a 
spring wagon and started over the National Road for Terre Haute. 
At Terre Haute all were attacked by malaria. They were detained 
here for several months by sickness and the death of a small 
girl. They then decided to give up the trip to St. Louis and re- 
turn by the Wabash and Erie canal. The two following selections 
are their description of two kinds of roads they passed over between 
Indianapolis and Terre Haute. 

But we soon left liim and his wagon behind, as we trotted 
lightly along this plank road. And very pleasant a plank 
road is to travel upon. It may be slippery in wet weather ; 
but now it saved us from the dust which would have arisen 
from travel; and the saw boards or planks, about three 
inches thick, being nailed to sleepers at the two sides of 
the road, spanned it from side to side, and rose and sank 
under us with the elasticity of the floor of a ball-room. 
On each side of the plank track, between it and the worm 
fences that bounded the road, were holes and stumps and 
ditches and natural water courses that no wheels could 
venture amongst. 

The road continued in a nearly straight direction 
through a jjleasant country, in which cultivated spots amid 
the woods and prairies grew more and more rare. There 
was a good deal of traffic on the road; quite as much as 
would be seen on a turnpike in England; but it was con- 
fined entirely to rough-and-ready carriages or agricultural 
teams. All these went at a trot — more or less fast. Plough 
horses, in all this country, get over nearly five miles an 
hour — with less fatigue to themselves than our heavy 
English teams creep over two miles. We passed, also, 
several wagons loaded with emigrants, some with their 
bedding and articles of furniture. Our horses attracted 
considerable notice, as being better than those usually 
driven by emigrants ; but in other respects, our equipage 
was entirely like those used in the country, and passed 
without the slightest regard. This was what we wished. 



'?'>'> 



Readinirs in Indiana History 



68. A Coi'dui'oy Road 

(Same reference as above, pp. 811-.'>12.) 

After Mount Meridian (Putnam county), we found our 
road changed sadly for the worse. It is true that it is 
marked in all the maps as the ''National Road" leading 
from east to west in an almost straight line — from Pitts- 
burgh (Washington) to St. Louis: and it had been fenced 
in and laid down as such: but Congress, by subsequent 
decision, declared the making and maintaining of roads was 
not a national aifair, but should be at the charge of each 
State that wanted them. 

The condition of this repudiated road, now, therefore, 
depended upon the wants and the traffic of each township 
through which it passed. The tract of country after pass- 
ing Mount Meridian was but thinly inhabited: the road 
was little used, and still less attention was given to keep 
it up. The water tables (drains) on each side were choked 
or washed away ; water courses ran down the middle of it or 
furrowed it deep from side to side, or dug it into wide pits. 
Sometimes these had to be passed through almost on step- 
ping stones ; sometimes the rain-channels were bridged over 
by planks, so short that there was not an inch to spare at the 
side of each wheel. Sometimes, where the gravelly top 
soil was quite worn away, and a quicksandy bottom ex- 
posed beneath, a track, just wide enough for the wheels, 
was made by a corduroy road laid across the bog. I have 
already explained the construction of a plank road: the 
difference between it and a corduroy road is much the same 
as that between a log and a frame house. 

A corduroy road is made of the unhewn boles of trees 
laid side by side on the earth. A slip is nailed across each 
end to keep them in their places : and the wheels, whether 
of carriages or wagon, fall from bole to bole with the regu- 
larity of the thumps and stops with which the wheels of a 
watch play into and arrest each other Sometimes, the 
hollow between prostrate trunks of trees is partially 
filled up with earth; and then of course^ the jolts are less 
severe. 



Transportation and Travel 223 

69. Some Early Stage Lines 

The stagecoach comes into a new country almost on the heels 
of the first settlers. They rattle over the stony roads or are 
dragged through the mud. Early in the spring of 1820 a Mr. 
Foyles started a stage line from Vincennes to Louisville. The ad- 
vertisement in the Western Sun of Vincennes stated that this was 
the first stage service started in Indiana. If it was the first on this 
road it was the first in the State. This stage left Vincennes at 
6 a. m. Wednesday and arrived at Louisville at 1 p. m. Friday. 
Returning it left Louisville Saturday morning and reached Vin- 
cennes Monday evening. A branch line ran down to Evansville ; 
and, beginning September 5, 1820, the Union line was opened from 
Vincennes to St. Louis. For more than twenty years stages made 
regular trips over this route. At present a stage from Paoli to 
New Albany runs over a part of this same route. It will soon be a 
century old. Part of the trip is now made in automobiles, a re- 
minder that the day of the stagecoach is over. 

(Madison and Indianapolis Mail Stage) 

(From Indiana Journal, August 28, 182G. An advertisement.) 

ARRIVAL & DEPARTURE 

of the 

MADISON AND INDIANAPOLIS MAIL STAGE 

This stage will leave Indianapolis on every Thursday 
at 7 o'clock, A. M., arrive at Columbus on Friday at 5 
o'clock P. M., leave Columbus on Saturday at 7 o'clock A. 
M., and arrive at Madison on Sunday at 5 o'clock P. M. 
Leave Madison on Thursday at 8 o'clock A. M. and arrive 
at Columbus on Friday at 5 o'clock P. M., leave Columbus 
on Saturday at 7 o'clock A. M., and arrive at Indianapolis 
on Sunday at 5 P. M. 

The stages are in good order and well-attended. Every 
care will be taken to render passengers comfortable. Terms 
of conveyance, six and a fourth cents per mile for grown 
persons. Each person privileged to carry small packages 
not exceeding fifteen pounds. 



224 Readings in Indiana History 

J8@" Persons wishing to take a passage on the stage will 
apply to Jordan Vigus, Indianapolis ; Daniel Taylor, Frank- 
lin; John G. Hubbard, Columbus; William Hoit, Vernon; 
and John Irwin, Madison. 

John Wilson, Proprietor. 

August, 1826. 

(Stageline from Indianapolis to Dayton) 

(From Indiana Journal August 4, 1832. An advertisement.) 



UNITED STATES MAIL 




Four-horse Stage Coach. 

MAIL STAGES 

Three Times a Week from Indianapolis to Dayton. 

The public are informed that a line of stages is now 
in operation from Indianapolis to Dayton, passing through 
in two days and a half. 

The stage leaves Indianapolis every Sunday, Tuesday, 
and Thursday at 2 o'clock P. M. and arrives every Sunday, 
Wednesday, and Friday at 3 P. M. 

This route connects with the line of stages from Cin- 
cinnati at Eaton, and passengers can go by this route from 
Indianapolis to Cincinnati in two days and a half. 

P. Beeks. 

July 10, 1832. 



Transportation and Travel 225 

70. Slow Travel by Stage 

(From Indiana Mariazine of Histonj. III. \). 23; article by E. I. Lewis 

[1907].) 

On a Wednesday noon, in 1837, Thomas Goodwin, the 
well-known veteran Methodist preacher, of Indianapolis, left 
Brookville for Greencastle to enter old Asbury University. 
It had been raining. The old four-horse stage lumbered 
along at a slow rate and reached Bulltown, seventeen miles 
from Brookville, that night at 7 o'clock. Goodwin put up 
for the night. The next morning he found a butcher's 
wagon, without springs, seat or cover— in place of the 
stagecoach — waiting at the door for him, and in a rain- 
storm that had set the corduroy afloat, the start was made 
for Indianapolis. The fifty miles to Indianapolis was one 
great quagmire and at 8 o'clock that night, when the 
''stage" was still six miles from the capital, an axle gave 
way. The driver took Goodwin's trunk ahead of him on 
the ''off" horse, and the contracting agent, with the mail 
in front of him and his passenger on behind, rode the 
"nigh" horse to Indianapolis, arriving at midnight and 
too late to catch the West stage. Goodwin had a day's 
lay over, in which to inspect the new State House and the 
largest city he had ever seen. 

At 10 o'clock that night he climbed on the nine-seated 
St. Louis limited stage and started for Putnamville. The 
road was macadamized as far as Eagle creek, but there the 
bogs were encountered again, and the stage came to a stand- 
still. The eight male passengers were ordered out and 
sent to the nearby rail fence to get pries. They extricated 
the stage from the mudhole and were ready to get aboard - 
when the driver announced that they had better carr}" those 
rails on down the road, for they would need them again. 
Plainfield, fourteen miles out, was reached in time for 
breakfast, and Putnamville at 4 o'clock. Goodwin reached 
Greencastle at 9 o'clock the next Sunday morning, having 
covered one hundred and twenty-four miles in a little less 
than four full days, traveling tw^o nights, at a total cost 
of $8 or $9, fare, and boarding and lodging. 

15—164.3 



226 



Readings in Indiana History 



71. An Old Time Western Tavern 



(From Tbwaites' Earli/ Wcsicni Travel!^. IX, pp. lGl-162 ; accoiiut by James 
Flint [1819]. Copyright. By permission of the Arthur H. Clarli 

Company, Cleveland.) 

This tavern was in Jefifersonville, a town then seventeen years 
oki. It was crowded at the time with land-buyers. 

A small degree of aversion to frivolous detail does not 
prevent me from describing a back-woods tavern. Like its 
owner, it commonly makes a conspicuous figure in its 
neigiiborliood. It is a log, a frame, or a brick house, fre- 
quently with a wooden piazza in front. From the top of a 




Log Tavern, Indiana. 

(Reproduced by permission, from Thwaites' Early ^Yestenl Travels. Copyright, the 
Arthur H. Clark Company, Cleveland. ) 

tall post, the sign-board is suspended. On it, a Washing- 
ton, a Montgomery, a Wayne, a Pike, or a Jackson, is 
usually portrayed, in a style that might not be easily de- 
ciphered except for the name attached. On the top of the 
house is a small bell, which is twice rung before meals. 
Immediately after the second peal, travellers and boarders 
assemble around the table, where they commence eating 
without preface. 

In such promiscuous parties, the governor of a State, 
or a general of the militia, may be seen side by side with 



Transportation and Travel 227 

the wagoner. The larger towns having taverns of dif- 
ferent qualities, and different rates of charges, a cUstinc- 
tion of company is the natural consequence. We breakfast 
and sup on coffee or tea, accompanied with plenty of beef, 
bacon, chickens, and eggs. The hostess (or host if he is 
unmarried) takes her seat at the head of the table, and dis- 
penses the tea. One or two hired people (or slaves, in 
slave-keeping parts of the country) wait at table. 

At dinner, wheaten and Indian corn breads, beef, pork, 
venison, wild turkey, geese, and poultry, are staple arti- 
cles; with a profusion of vegetables, such as cucumbers, 
onions, cabbages, beans, and preserved fruits. Lodging in 
taverns has not generally all the convenience that could 
be wished for. It is common to see several beds in the 
same room, and these are simple bedsteads without hang- 
ings. There are no bells in the bed-rooms, and other apart- 
ments; nor are menials accustomed to move at the signal 
of the stranger. Water is rarely to be met with in bed- 
rooms ; washing is, of course, performed under a shed be- 
hind the house, or at the pump. 

A full house is always the apology for causing two 
strangers to sleep in the same bed; the propriety of the 
custom will always be admitted by the person who arrives 
latest. It has been my lot to sleep with a diversity of per- 
sonages, I do believe, from the driver of the stage coach, 
to men of considerable name. The noted cutaneous disease 
[itch] is certainly not prevalent; if it was, the beds of 
taverns, which, like burying grounds, lay all on a level, 
would soon make the disease as prevalent in this country 
as in some others in the old world. 

If Europeans and others, who indulge in censorious re- 
marks on western taverns and tavern-keepers, would make 
reasonable allowances for the thinly-settled state of the 
country, the high price of labor, and the great number of 
travellers, their criticisms might be somewhat softened. 
The man who cannot enjoy a placid temper under depriva- 
tion of a part of the comforts of a more advanced state of 
society, is surely to be pitied for having business in the 
backwoods of America. 



228 Readings in Indiana History 

72. A Bad Tavern 

(From The Wabash, by J. R. Beste [1855]. I, pp. 303-312.) 

The country became more wild ; the road more broken ; 
yet onward we toiled. Dark fir woods covered the little 
we could see of the country; and day was closing in as the 
longed-for Long's House loomed in sight. It was a single 
house. My children hurried out of the wagon, and into a 
neat parlor on the ground floor, where was a bed in a re- 
cess. 

*'0n the table," writes Louise, [Mr. Beste 's daughter] 
"lay several books of fashions, magazines, and other books, 
which I looked over. I had just begun to interest myself 
in a German ghost story, when a young woman with long 
ringlets [curls] came in and, taking the book from me, 
said 'I wish you'd let those books alone, and not go spoil- 
ing them that way.' So saying, she left the room, slam- 
ming the door after her. At that moment, our youngest 
brother, who had been asleep on the lap of one of our sisters, 
woke up and began crying for some tea, he was so thirsty. 
Mamma was trying to pacify him, when papa came into 
the room with the landlady. ' ' 

I had, in fact, driven my wagon to the side of the road, 
and followed Mr. Long as he led my horses into the large 
barn at the bottom of his farmyard. Here I had had to 
consult with him how many ears of Indian corn the horses 
ought to have with their oats ; for it seemed to be con- 
sidered necessary that they should have some, and to be 
dangerous to give them too many. The ears were to be 
paid for at so much each. Mr. Long was an Irishman, 
who had emigrated many years before; he had married 
an American, by whom he had a grown-up daughter; he 
was very civil, but, apparently, melancholy and timid. This 
I could account for when I became acquainted with his 
wife and daughter. For, when I now accompanied her into 
the little room where all my family were congregated, and 
we asked her to show us our bedrooms, she drily answered 
that she couldn't spare us any. 

"Where, then, are we to sleep!" I asked. 

"Oh, you can sleep here, can't you?" she replied. 



Transportation and Travel 229 

''What! father, mother, and eleven children!" 

"Well, now, if you can't sleep here, I calculate that you 
must sleep in the wagon. ' ' 

I had already discovered that, to get even money's worth 
in these countries, it was necessary to adopt a system of 
canvassing; to treat every one as one would an unwilling 
or hostile voter in an English election. Fortunately, we 
had had experience in such matters ; and drawing the cross- 
grained old woman aside, my wife and I began to butter 
and coax her with soft sawder, as if we hoped to get her 
plump [vote] for us. The infernal hag at last so far re- 
lented as to place one other, a large double-bedded room, 
at our disposal. We hurried some of our children into it, 
to secure it, while others went out into the wagons to fetch 
in their carpet-bag and dressing-cases, afraid to ask the 
woman of the house to assist them, lest she should take the 
room from them again. We now begged to have tea. 

' ' But what do you want tea for I ' ' 

"Because," I said, "we have had nothing to eat since 
two o'clock, and the children are very hungry." 

"Well, now, you should have come earlier; for we have 
all finished this long time, and you would not have us fix 
it up again, would you?" 

Again we had recourse to the ' ' butter ' ' and ' ' soft saw- 
der"; and again, but with greater difficulty, we persuaded 
mother and daughter to give us what we needed. They 
boiled the kettle and spread the cloth in another room; 
whining through their noses and talking at us during the 
whole time. Once, I unluckily said a few words in praise 
of their meek husband and father, who wisely stayed with 
the horses in the stable; my praise only turned their talk 
against all emigrants and Irishmen. 

Meanwhile, Morrison arrived with the luggage wagon 
and silently drew it up beside the road. He then unhar- 
nessed his horses and tied them to a paling; and the first 
words he spoke to any one, were addressed to the landlord 
who had come out to greet him: — 

"Well, colonel, good evening. Can you oblige me with 
a few oats and a score of corn heads for these horses?" 



230 Readings in Indiana History 

' ' Will you not put them in the stable ? " I asked. 

''What would be the good? It is a fine warm night. 
Why should I pay for stable room!" 

Our six girls, with their two baby brothers, now took 
possession of the room which our tactics had won from the 
she-dragons, Mother and Daughter Long. Our three elder 
boys went out to pass the night amid the hay in the bottom 
of our wagon; and I and m.y wife were left to our parlor 
downstairs. 

"There were two large beds in our room," writes Lucy; 
''and we took off one of the mattresses and laid it on the 
floor for our elder sisters, Catherine and Ellen, and our 
little Isabel. Agnes and Louise took one of the beds, and 
I had the other for myself and two baby brothers. I was 
awakened about twenty times during the night, by first one 
babj^ kicking me on one side and then the other on the 
other side. Sometimes they would throw themselves across 
me ; sometimes one of them would kick me in the face in his 
restless sleep. I had not much rest or sleep that night; 
but poor Ellen was worse off than I. Each time I woke, 
she was either tossing about the bed or walking up and 
down the room, with the toothache, afraid of disturbing 
Catherine. It was with joy we heard a clock strike six, 
and we all got up immediately, tired as we were. But here 
a new difficulty arose, there was neither basin, jug, water, 
nor towels in the room." We asked our kind hostess to 
give us some, and she asked, in her usual querulous tone : — 

' ' But what do jou want them for ? ' ' 

"To wash ourselves with." 

"Well, then, you can't have them, for we haven't any." 

"But what are we to do?" 

"You can go down to the yard and you'll find a i3ump 
and a towel." 

"We did not relish the idea," continues Lucy; "so Ellen 
dressed herself and went down, and found the daugliter 
of the old woman, and represented to her how she had been 
sutf ering all night after a fatiguing day ; and how unpleas- 
ant it would be to begin another day without making any 
ablutions. After talking to her thus for a long time — but 



Transportation and Travel 231 

with the greatest politeness — she succeeded in obtaining 
from her a small tin pie-dish and a towel; she then went 
to the pump, and filled the dish with water, and brought 
her prize up to iis. Imagine what a splendid washing we 
had in the pie-dish!" 

This morning Mrs. Long and her daughter x^ositively 
refused to give us any breakfast. "It was too much trou- 
ble." "There were too many of us." " She had something 
else to do." "She did not care for our money." And 
"there was a good hotel one mile further on." 

The last motive encouraged us to let her have her own 
way ; and we left her. I forgot all the woes that I impre- 
cated on her head; but my feelings are now calmed down 
and as, no doubt, the two women have worried their hus- 
band and father to death, I now only wish that the daughter 
may have married some sturdy German emigrant who 
beats both her and her mother once a w^eek, and compels 
them to wash themselves. The libellers ! Why, according to 
their showing, American women (they themselves were 
American born) in the station of farmers' wives, know no 
other ablutions than what they administer to themselves at 
the pump in the yard! Can this be true? 

73. Flatboating Days: Building a Flatboat 

(From A Pioneer HMonj of Indiamt, hy Col. William M. Cockrum [1907], 

pp. 508-510.) 

The heyday of flatlioating in Indiana was during the period from 
1830 to 1860. Before 1820 the boatmen usually had to walk l)ack 
from New Orleans or row a boat against the stream. After that 
date they could return on the steamboats. New Orleans was the 
wonderland of the West. A trip there then meant as much as a 
trip to Europe now. 

There is scarcely a State in the Mississippi Valley so well situated 
for this trade as Indiana. The Ohio, the Whitewater, the Wabash 
to Huntington, the White as far up as Muncie, and Columbus, 
with the literally hundreds of their tributaries were the thorough- 
fares for these unmanageable boats. It was customary for the 
boatmen to gather into little fleets of ten or a dozen and go do"\vn 
the Mississippi together. 



232 Readings in Indiana History 

Many prosperous farmers loaded their own boats. In other 
cases a boat would be loaded with the produce of a whole neigh- 
borhood. Boating was a profession with some men. The boatmen 
began as soon as Spring opened by cutting the fine big poplars in 
the forest for gunw^ales. These were felled before the sap rose in 
the spring. As soon as they seasoned they were hauled to the 
landing and the boat built. The boats were not loaded usually till 
the first of March. This was a busy time. As soon as the water 
was right all the hands and teams in the neighborhood were sum- 
moned to the landing or port and the work began. Everything was 
rushed. The women came and cooked for the men so they could 
eat right on the ground and lose no time. Chickens, geese, tur- 
keys, venison, pork, hogs, cattle, whiskey, corn, meal, flour, stoves, 
lumber, all were stowed away in the boat and sent to New Orleans. 
As soon as the last wagon load was aboard the lines were cut and 
the boat and boatmen floated away. The loaders repaired to the 
largest nearby house or barn and enjoyed a good frolic, after 
which the whole neighborhood waited patiently for the return of the 
boatmen. 

To make one of these boats was quite an undertaking. 
The first thing to do was to secure two gunwales. They 
were usually made out of large poplar trees and were from 
sixty to eighty feet in length. A fine large, straight tree 
was selected, and after it was cut down, two faces of it 
were hewn, leaving it about twenty-four inches thick. Then 
it was turned down on large logs and split in halves, hewn 
down to from twelve to fifteen inches in thickness, thus 
making both the gunwales out of one tree. The two ends 
were sloped from six to eight feet, so that when the bottom 
was on, it had a boat shape, that would run much faster in 
the water. The gunwales were then hauled to the boat- 
yard and placed on rollers. The distance apart which was 
wanted for the width of the boat was usually from fourteen 
to sixteen feet. Strong sills or girders were framed into 
the gimwales every eight or ten feet and securely fastened 
there by strong pins. Small girders or sleepers, to receive 
the bottom of the boat, were pinned into the cross sills or 
girders every eighteen inches and even with the bottom of 
the gunwales. The bottom was made of one and a half 
inch lumber, the length to reach from outside to outside of 



Transportation and Travel 233 

gunwales, where it was securely nailed or pinned and then 
calked. 

The old Indiana flatboat builders used hemp for calk- 
ing, driving it into the cracks between the edges of the 
planks with a calking chisel made for the purpose. When 
this was done, another bottom of inch Imnber was made 
over this that held the calking in place and made the bottom 
stronger. When the bottom was finished, it was ready 
for launching. This was done by having large auger holes 
in the round logs the bottom rested on and turning them 
with hand spikes. The ground was always sloping toward 
the river and it did not require much turning until the logs 
would roll down the slope and carry the boat into the water. 

The boat having been made bottom upward had to be 
turned. A large amount of mud and dirt was piled on 
the edge of the bottom, which was intended to sink it. Then 
a check line was fastened to the farthest edge and near the 
middle the line was carried over a large limb or fork of 
a tree and two or three yoke of oxen hitched to it. When 
everything was ready, the boat was turned right side up. 
It was then full of water, which had to be bailed out. The 
upper frame work for the body of the boat was made very 
securelj^ and well braced and the siding was nailed on. 
Strong joists were put on top of the frame work from side 
to side to hold the decking. A center girder ran lengthwise 
of the boat and this rested on a post every six or eight 
feet. This girder was a little higher than the outer walls, 
so that the water would run off the deck. 

A strong post was fastened in a framework made on 
the false 'bottom which came up through the decking about 
three feet near each end of the boat. Holes were bored 
in these check posts, so that it could be turned around with 
long wooden spikes. The check rope was securely fastened 
to these posts and one end of it was carried to the bank and 
fastened. By using the spikes the check post would take 
up the slack and the boat could be securely landed as near 
the banl^ as wanted. 

There were three long oars ; the steering oar had a wide 
blade on the end and was fastened to a post on the back 



234 Readings in Indiana History 

of the boat. This oar was used as a rudder in guiding 
the direction of the boat. The other two oars were used 
as sweeps to propel the boat and to pull her out of eddies. 
This crudely fashioned boat would carry a large amount 
of produce. The pork was usually packed in the boat in 
bulk; flour, wheat and corn were stored on raised floors so 
as to keep them dry. On small rivers when the water was 
at flood tide, two liundred thousand pounds of pork, one 
thousand bushels of corn and many other articles of pro- 
duce would be carried. 

The pioneers made their location where there was plenty 
of good spring water, but at a later date they had two 
objects in selecting their homes ; first to be near a mill 
or a place where there was a good mill-site; second to be 
not far from a river where a flatbo.'it could be loaded with 
produce. The money paid for the produce to load the 
boats brought great prosperity to the country. On the 
lower Mississippi, where the great sugar plantations were, 
there was a great demand for this provision. A boat would 
tie to the bank near one of these immense plantations and 
would sell the owner a half boat-load of meat, corn and 
flour. 

It took one of these boats a month to run out of the 
Wabash down to New Orleans. They would sell their load 
of produce and then sell the boat. These old boatmen were 
a jolly, generous, light-hearted set of men, and would often 
lash their boats together and float for several days and 
nights in that way on the lower Mississippi. 

74. Indiana Flatboats at New Orleans 

(From the Indianapolis Journal. Aug. 1. 1S.34 ; article by John Matthews.) 

In the spring of 1829, I was standing on the levee at 
New Orleans, amid the crowded hundreds who throng that 
place every day at that season of the year. I marked the 
astonishment of the numerous persons at the amazing quan- 
tity of flatboats from Indiana, and amongst others, two 
foreign gentlemen whose conversation I chanced to over- 
hear. One of them said to the other, "Indiana must be a 
very large State, or she could never send so many boats." 



Transportation and Travel 235 

Little did tliey think that all those boats were from a very 
small portion, perhaps less than a tenth part of our State. 
The great number of Indiana boats was the common topic 
of the boatmen as well as of strangers. All seemed to 
agree that one-half of the boats then at New Orleans were 
from Indiana ! — And I thought that one-fourth of that num- 
ber were out of White river. 

Tlie follo\^dng article from the New Orleans Picayune, copied 
by the Logransport Herald, October 1, 1839, shows how the Hoosier 
flatboatman was regarded in New Orleans. 

He is frank, free, and generous — of a noble nature, and 
his utter unbelief in deception and chicanery, too often make 
him the dupe of the dishonest and the victim of the vicious. 
We do love to see a Hoosier roll along the levee with the 
proceeds of the plunder of liis flatboat in his pocket. It is 
the wages of industry — of labor performed at the impulse 
of his own free will; and no lordly ecclesiastic or titled 
layman dares claim a cent of it. He feels the pride of 
his place and would not barter his situation for the empty 
popularity, or the enviable notoriety which is often the 
recompense of the statesman, or of him who embarks on 
the troubled waters of public life. He feels that on his 
return to his home he is master as it were of ''all he sur- 
veys. ' ' He can, sitting round the bright and blazing wood 
fire, relate cit}^ scenes or adventures of travel to his credu- 
lous neighbors, and although he may not do it with the 
elegance of a Willis or the fidelity of an Irving, he does 
it in language understood by his audience, and in accents 
which never fail to interest. He knows there is no task- 
master to say when he shall work and when rest — himself 
is sole arbiter in the case. He knows that he may aid at 
the "log rolling," join the "apple be," frolic, go to the 
"corn hoeing," "corn husking," or "coon hunt" of his 
neighbors, or indulge in any other amusement or occupation 
which his fancy may dictate. To use an independent, 
though not very elegant expression, he knows full well that 

when he gets home he may do just as he "d n pleases." 

But let us take another view of him on the levee. See with 



236 Readings in Indiana History 

what pity lie regards tliose who are confined to the un- 
changing monotony of a city life, and observe how he de- 
spises uniformity of dress. He has just donned a new 
blue dresscoat with silk linings and flowered gilt buttons. 
His new pants look rather short for the present fashion; 
but this is easy to account for. They were of stocking fit 
or French cut at the instep, and thinking they pressed 
rather closely to be comfortable, he has curtailed them of 
some six inches of their fair proportions. He carries a 
dozen new shirts- — some colored and some of white or linen 
in his hand, but he glories in still sporting the same un- 
polished peg boots, and the woolen, round topped, wide 
leafed hat in which he set out from home. The Hoosier 
says, or rather seems to say — 

'A life ill the woods for me,' 

and his happy and independent life attests the wisdom of 
his choice. 

75. A Ferry-Boat "Ad" 

(I-'roin IndidiKi JiiHniaJ. .Tune 7. 182.5.) 
In the days before brid^res there were necessarily far more fer- 
ries than at present. Every county had licensed ferrymen. On 
the Louisville-Vincennes sta^e road there were two well-known fer- 
ries, one over Driftwood at Houghton's or Mount Pleasant, the other 
over White river at ^laysville. The ferryman was usually a tavern- 
keeper as well. The following- advertisement shows the importance 
of the business in the early period of our history. 

NEW FERRY 

THE subscriber informs his friends and the public, that, 
having obtained authority from the Board of Justices of 
Morgan County, he has established a FERRY on White 
River, about a mile below the Bluffs, and at the place 
where the road from Franklin to Crawfordsville crosses 
the river. His boat is new, strong, and well-built, and the 
landing on either side is excellent, so that travellers and 
others can cross with the utmost safety and convenience. 

The strictest attention will be paid to those who may 
favor him with a call. 

Benjamin Mills. 



Transportation and Travel 237 

76. A Steamboat Trip on the Wabash 

(Froii) h'ccolloctions of the Early Settlement of the Wahash Valleij, by 
Sanford C. Cox [ISGO], pp. Ml-144.) 

The pioneers had great hopes that many of the interior streams 
of Indiana could be made navigable for small steamboats. The 
early newspapers are full of schemes for navigating these streams. 
The State at one time undertook to clear them of bars and drifts. 
Merchants and townbuilders offered masters of small steamers 
large rewards if they would run their boats far up the streams so 
they might be called navigable. 

Little serious effort was ever spent on any of the minor streams, 
but greater hopes were built on the possibilities of White river and 
the Wabash. It was confidently believed that White river could 
be opened to the year-round navigation of boats of large tonnage. 
During the session of 1825 Alexander Ralston was appointed to 
examine the obstructions in West fork of White river from Sam- 
ple's mill, in Randolph county, to its junction with the East fork, 
and the latter from the junction of Blue river and Sugar creek in 
the southeast corner of Johnson county to its mouth, and to report 
to the next Legislature. Much spasmodic and ineffective labor 
was spent on these streams, but the recurring freshets kept the 
rivers full of drifts and uprooted trees. The journals of the Leg- 
islature contain numerous petitions to break up drifts that had 
interrupted navigation. These streams formed the main outlet 
for the surplus farm products of their valleys. Flatboats were 
built, loaded in convenient pools, and, when the water reached the 
proper stage, were floated down to the Wabash and Ohio, then either 
reshipped or taken on to New Orleans. Hundreds of these went 
down the Wabash every year. 

Upstream navigation was well-nigh impossible, but was occa- 
sionally resorted to when roads were impassable. It was difficult 
to get along the shore with a tow line, so the only way to propel a 
boat upstream was with sharp poles set against the bottom. This 
plan was used most on the Upper Wabash from Lafayette to Lo- 
gansport and Peru. Steamboats rarely went above Lafayette, and 
for several years an extensive commerce in salt and manufactured 
goods was carried on between that place and upstream towns by 
means of pole-boats. For this purpose they used a flat-bottomed 
boat thirty to forty feet long, with four foot-guards, along which 
six or eight men walked and pushed with spike poles set against 
the bottom. In this manner three or four tons could be driven 
eight to ten miles per day. 



238 Readings in Indiana History 

There were many attempts in the early years of Indiana to 
pilot steamboats up to the upper Wabash towns. The best water 
usually came in March. In 1821 Mr. Linton, a trader from Terre 
Haute, had a steamer run to that town, which they estimated to 
be three hundred miles from the Ohio. A merchant of Lafayette, 
named Elston, freighted a steamer to that town as early as 1825. 
On March 24, 1830, Captain John Moon, of Ripley, Ohio, ran the 
"Paragon" to the mouth of Rock creek, about twelve miles below 
Logansport. They reported good water — six and one-half feet — 
on the bar below Logansport. These reports, and the fact that 
boats could be loaded anywhere along the river for the New Orleans 
market, brought a rush of settlers. 

During the June freshet in 1834, a little steamer, called 
the '^Republican," advertised that she would leave the 
wharf at Lafayette for Logansport on a given day. A few 
of us concluded to take a pleasure trip on the ''Eepublican" 
and be on the pioneer steamboat that would land at Logans- 
port, a thriving town situated at the confluence of the 
Wabash and Eel rivers, in the heart of a beautiful and 
fertile region of country. At the hour appointed the *' Re- 
publican" left the landing at Lafayette under a good head 
of steam, and ''walked the waters like a thing of life." We 
soon passed Cedar Bluffs, Davis' Ferry, the mouths of 
Wild Cat and Tippecanoe, and began to anticipate a quick 
and successful trip. But soon after passing the Delphi 
landing, the boat stuck fast upon a sand-bar, which detained 
us for several hours. 

Another and another obstruction was met with every 
few miles, which were overcome with much difficulty, labor, 
and delay. At each successive sand-bar the most of the 
boat's crew, and many of the passengers got out into the 
water and lifted at the boat, or pulled upon a large rope 
that was extended to the shore — an important auxiliary to 
steam power to propel the vessel over these obstructions. 
Night overtook us stuck fast upon the bottom of the river 
below Tipton 's port. 

"Tired nature's sweet restorer — b:ilniy sleep," rein- 
vigorated all hands for the labor of Tie following day, 
which was spent in a similar manner to the afternoon of 



Transportation and Travel 239 

the day before, in lifting in the water and pulling at the 
capstan. At length we arrived at Georgetown Rapids, 
about seven miles below Logansport, which we were in- 
formed was the only shoal water we would have before 
reaching our destination. 

Here extraordinary efforts were made to ascend the 
rapids. Col. Pollard and Job B. Eldridge, Esq., of 
Logansport, who had goods on board, and were both labor- 
ing in the water and at the capstan, were particularly anx- 
ious that Captain Towe would reach that place, and his 
boat have the honor and advantage of being the first steam- 
er that had ascended as high as that point, and receive a 
bonus of several hundred dollars, that had been offered as a 
premium to the captain of the first steamer that should 
land at their wharf. 

Several days and nights were spent in fruitless at- 
tempts to get over the rapids. All hands, except the wom- 
en, and a few others were frequently in the water up to 
their chins, for hours together, endeavoring to lift the boat 
off the bar. The water fell rapidly, and prevented the 
boat from either ascending farther up, or returning down 
the river. While at this place we were visited by several 
companies of well dressed and fine looking Miami and Pot- 
tawattomie Indians, of all ages and sexes, who would sit 
for hours on the bank admiring the boat, which they greatly 
desired to see in motion, under a full head of steam. After 
four days and nights ineffectual effort to proceed, the boat 
was abandoned by all except the captain and a part of his 
crew. 

Two or three weeks afterwards over a dozen yoke of 
large oxen were brought down from Logansport, and the 
' * Republican ' ' was hauled over the ripples and sand-bars to 
Logansport, and the citizens of that place and the sur- 
rounding country had the luxury of a steamboat arrival 
on the 4th of July, and Captain Towe had the (doubt- 
ful) honor of being the commander of the first steamboat 
that visited Logansport; for it cost him his boat, which 
bilged soon after its arrival in port, and its hull, years 



240 Readings in Indiana History 

afterwards, might be seen lying sunk to the bottom of the 
Wabash near its confluence with the waters of Eel river. 

During the next summer there was another June freshet 
in the Wabash, and the steamboat "Science" was adver- 
tised for a trip to Logansport, Peru, and Chief Godfroy's 
Village above the mouth of the Mississinewa. The un- 
usually high stage of the river gave fine promise of a suc- 
cessful trip, and some seventy or eighty of the citizens of 
Lafayette, a majority of whom were ladies, went on board 
for a pleasure trip up the Wabash. At Delphi and other 
points along the river, considerable accessions were made 
to our company. The boat reached Logansport without 
any difficulty. There was a large increase of passengers 
from this point. The Tiptons, Lasselles, Durets, Polks, 
Johnsons, and many other of the old settlers of the town 
turned out, many of them with their entire families, for a 
steamboat excursion, to visit the neighboring towns of 
Peru, and their aboriginal neighbors, and valuable custo- 
mers at Godfroy's Village. 

The boat left the wharf at Logansport under a full head 
of steam, which was considered necessary to carry her over 
the rapids a short distance above town. Our gallant boat 
failed to make the ripple — and after puffing and snorting 
for about two hours without gaining over forty feet, she 
dropped back to the foot of the rapids, where several hun- 
dred of the passengers went ashore to walk round the 
rapids, and preparations were made for an extra effort to 
ascend the rapids. Eosin, tar, and sides of bacon were 
freely cast into the fire, to create more steam, and another 
longer and stronger effort was made to get over the rapids, 
but in vain. Several old men, and invalids, and quite a 
number of old ladies remained on board the boat. 

On this second attempt to get over the rapids, all of us 
who remained on the boat were in great danger of losing 
our lives. By some means the boat became unmanageable, 
and darted in a backward and lateral direction toward an 
island, swift as the running current could carry it. On 
seeing this sudden change in the course of the boat, the 
captain, mate, and several of the boat's crew leaped over- 



Transportation and Travel 241 

board with a large cable in their hands, on witnessing which 
some of the passengers cried, "We are lost!" The women 
shrieked and clung to each other and their male friends in 
laiots in different parts of the ladies' cabin. 

I remember saying, "no danger, no danger," as I 
pressed to the door of the ladies' saloon, from which I in- 
tended to spring ont into the river ; but on opening, I found 
three female acquaintances clinging to my arms and coat 
skirts, declaring they would go with me, if I left the boat. 
Quick as electricity the thought flashed through my mind 
that it would be impossible for me to swim ashore with so 
many holding fast to me ; and just at that moment the keel 
of the boat near the middle struck upon a stone in the bed 
of the river, which turned the boat out into the stream, and 
she darted like an arrow past the island, upon which she 
would have been dashed to pieces, had she not, providen- 
tially, hit upon the stone, to which circumstance the cap- 
tain attributed the saving of his boat, and perhaps the lives 
of a majority of those on board at that time. 

After thus narrowly escaping the destruction of his 
boat, the captain deemed it prudent to drop down to 
liOgansport again, and lighten the boat. Over two hundred 
barrels of flour and salt were taken off the boat, which laid 
that night at the landing at Logansport — and one hundred 
or more of the citizens of Lafayette and Delphi shared the 
hospitality of their neighbors at Logansport. After all 
the hotels and boarding houses were filled to overflowing, 
private houses were thrown open to accommodate those 
who could not get lodging on the boat, and the next morn- 
ing scores were willing to bear witness to the kindness and 
hospitality of the citizens of Logansport. 

77. First Steamboat on White River 

(From Indiana Magazine of History, II, pp. 95-OG ; account by John 

Scott [about 1875].) 

In 1829, I continued on the steamboat, "Victory," run- 
ning up and down the Ohio river until near the last of 
August; then the "Victory" laid up to repair. I then went 
aboard of the steamboat "Traveler," William Sanders, 

16—1643 



242 Readings in Indiana History 

master, bound for New Orleans. Yellow fever was raging 
in New Orleans at this time. After our safe return from 
New Orleans, I asked Captain Sanders for my discharge; 
he would not hear of it, and went up to Louisville — our 
boat was lying at Shippingport. When he returned he 
said: "I have got a full load to go up AVhite river to 
Spencer." White river empties into the Wabash river 
near Mi Carmel, though on the opposite side of the river. 
Spencer is in Indiana. So we loaded the boat with salt. 
Neither of us was ever up White river, but we went on our 
way up the Wabash to Mt. Carmel, then up the White 
river. ' White river is a small stream and very crooked ; 
we went over mill-dams, for the water was high, and we 
finally arrived at Spencer. The steamboat "Traveler" 
was the first steamboat that ever turned a wheel on White 
river; William Sanders, master. 

The water commenced falling so we had to hurry out 
our load of salt, and go out of the river as soon as possible. 
Captain Sanders said we would run down the river about 
thirty miles, land some passengers, and stay there all night, 
as we had told him we could not run in the night. It was 
Christopher's first watch. We went down White river and 
landed the passengers, sometime in the fore part of the 
night. The Captain then said, "We will go on tonight." 
Christopher said nothing, and away we went. I told Chris- 
topher if he could stand it, I could. So my partner stood 
watch [pilot] until twelve o'clock and then called me up. 
AVIien I took hold of the wheel I do not think I was ever 
in such a bad fix in my life, for a man that is a pilot 
can generally see the river all the way ahead of him. How- 
ever, I told my partner that I would go it blind. If there 
was ever any time in my life when I longed for the light of 
day that v»^as the time. So we continued on down until I 
heard the chickens crow; then I knew it was not long until 
davlight. The first thing I knew we went into the Wabash 
river, then I was all right. The Wabash, after Wliite 
river, appeared to be as wide as the Mississippi and we 
went on our way rejoicing to Louisville, without accident. 



CHAPTER XIII 

TRAVEL STORIES 

Travel in ''the "West" from 1800 to 1830 had the same attrac- 
tion for eastern people as traveling among the western ranches and 
Rocky mountains has at present. No foreigner thought of "do- 
ing" America without crossing the Alleghenies. There were two 
main roads by which the travelers came west. Most of them came 
up the Hudson and Mohawk rivers to Lake Erie. From Cleveland 
or Toledo they crossed Ohio State to Cincinnati. Thence they 
went by stage to Frankfort or down the Ohio river to Madison or 
Louisville. The Wabash country had a great reputation even in 
Europe. An early Presbyterian missionary wrote back to Con- 
necticut that the Wabash came near being his ideal of Paradise. 
From the Ohio river the travelers reached the Wabash valley 
either by stage or by the Wabash boats. The boats ran for only 
a few months in the spring. If the travellers came by stage they 
usually started from Madison or Lawrenceburg and came to In- 
dianapolis, whence they took stage for Terre Haute, Lafayette or 
Logansport. At a later date they came by the Wabash and Erie 
canal either from Toledo or Evansville. Some of the wealthier 
travellers bought teams at Louisville, or Cincinnati and drove 
through, passing on across Illinois, and selling their teams at St. 
Louis. The roads and taverns were a continual surprise to these 
travellers, many of whom were used to the roads and taverns, and 
especially the servants, of Europe. Their comments often give 
us a sidelight not to be had from the old settlers themselves, to 
whom the manners and customs of the tavern and stage were com- 
mon everyday affairs, not worth mentioning. 

78. From the Ohio to the New Purchase 

(Frora The New Purcliase, by Baynard R. Hall [1855], pp. 46-52.) 

Baynard R. Hall came to Indiana before 1823 and settled near 
Gosport. In 1823 he became the first principal of the Indiana 
State Seminary. He was a graduate of Union College and of 
Princeton Theological Seminaiy. He soon entered into the pioneer 
life of Indiana and became one of the best marksmen with the ritle 
in the neighborhood. His salaiy as principal of Indiana Seminary 

(243) 



244 Readings in Indiana History- 

was $250 per year of ten months. This was considered very high. 
He remained seven and one-half years at Bloomington. His book, 
The New Purchase, is the best description of pioneer life available. 
In it under the designation "Mr. C." (or Mr. Carlton) he conceals 
his own identity. 

''Who could have dreamed, my dear," said Mrs. C. to 
her husband, "these forests, so picturesque when seen from 
the Ohio, concealed such roads?" 

Mr. C. made no reply ; altliough the phenomenon was 
certainly very remarkable. In fact, his idea about the 
Muses was passing in review — and he thought, maybe after 
all, it was something else that had echoed the flute notes. 
The lady's query, however, and the gentleman's silence 
occurred about thirty miles due north of the Ohio river, 
in a very new State of the far west. They were seated in 
a two-horse Yankee cart — a kind of mongrel dearborn — 
amid what was now called their "plunder" — with a hired 
driver on the front seat, and intending to find, if possible, 
a certain spot in a very uncertain part of the New Pur- 
chase — about one hundred and twent}^ miles in the interior, 
and beyond Shining river.^' This was the second day in the 
elementary lessons of the forest travelling; in which, how- 
ever, they had been sufficiently fortunate as to get a taste 
of buttermilk land" — "spouty land" — "mash land" — 
"rooty and snaggy land" — of mud holes, ordinary and ex- 
traordinary — of quicksands — and "corduroys" woven 
single and double twill — and even fords with and without 
bottom. 

The autumn is decidedly preferable for travelling on the 
virgin soil of native forests One may go then mostly by 
land and find the roads fewer and shorter ; but in the early 
spring, branches — small creeks — are brim full, and they 
hold a great deal; concealed fountains bubble up in a thou- 
sand places where none were supposed to lurk ; creeks turn 
to rivers, and rivers to lakes, and lakes to bigger ones ; and 
as if this was too little water, out come the mole rivers that 
have burrowed under the earth, and which, when so unex- 
pectedly foimd, are styled out there — "lost rivers!" And 

" AVhite River. 



Travel Stories 245 

every district of a dozen miles square lias a lost river. 
Travelling by land becomes of course travelling by water, or 
by both, mixed, viz., mud and water. Nor is it possible, 
if one would avoid drowning or suffocation, to keep the 
law and follow the blazed road; but he tacks first to the 
right and then to the left, often making both losing tacks ; 
and all this, not to find a road but a place where there is no 
road — mud thick enough to bear, or that has at least some 
bottom. 

Genuine Hoosiers, Corn-crackers, all that sort of gen- 
iuses — lose comparatively little time in this species of navi- 
gation ; for such know instinctively where it is proper to 
quit the submerged road of the legislature. And so we, 
at last, in utter despair of finding a royal road to the New 
Purchase, did enter souse into the most ill-looking, dark- 
coloured morasses, enlivened by streams of purer mud 
crossing at right angles, and usually much deeper than 
we cared to discover. 

The first night we had stayed at a "public" tavern; 
yet, while the tavern was of brick, candor forces me to 
record that affairs so much resembled the hardware and 
crockery in their streaked and greasy state after Messrs. 
Brown & Co. had cleaned them, that we were rejoiced — • 
prematurely, however, — when morning allowed us, half-re- 
freshed, to resume our land tacking. But more than once 
afterwards did we sigh for the comforts of the Brick Tav- 
ern, with its splendid sign of the sun rising and setting be- 
tween two partitions of paint intended for hills ; and which 
sun looked so much like spreading rays, that a friend 
soberly asked us afterwards if we didn't ''put up the first 
night at the sign of the Fan!" 

This chapter opens up after sunset on our second day, 
and we inquired with much anxiety at a miserable cabin, 
how far it was to the next tavern, and were answered — 
"A smart bit yet — maybe more nor three miles by the 
blaze, but the most powerfulest road!" Since early morn- 
ing we had, with incessant driving, done nearly twenty 
miles ; if then we had, in a bad road, done by daylight about 
one and a half miles per hour, how were we likely to do 



246 Readings in Indiana History 

three miles in the dark, and over what a native styled — 
the "most powerfnlest road"? Hence, as the lady of the 
cabin seemed kind, and more than once expressed compas- 
sion for "my womin body" — so she called Mrs. C. ; — and 
as she "allowed" we had better stop where we were, we 
with a sudden and very respectful remembrance of the 
Rising or Setting Fan Tavern, agreed to halt. And so ! — 
at last — we were going really and actually to pass a night 
in a veritable, rity-dity cabin ! — in a vast forest too ! — and 
far enough from all the incumbrances of eastern civiliza- 
tion! 

"And did you not thrill, Mr. Carlton?" 

I rather think, kind reader, I did; at least I felt some 
sort of a shiver; especially as the gloom of the frightful 
shades increased; and the deafening clangor of innumer- 
able rude frogs in the mires and on the trees arose ; and the 
whirl and Inrni and buzz of strange, savage insects and rep- 
tiles, and of winged and unwinged bugs, began and in- 
creased and grew still louder; and vapours damp, chilly 
and fetid ascended and came down ; and the only field in 
sight was a few yards of "clearing," stuck with trunks of 
"deadened" trees and great stumps blackened with the 
fires ! And I think the thrill, or whatever it was, grew 
more and more intense on turning towards the onward 
road, and finding a suspicion in my mind that it only led to 
the endless repetition of the agreeable night scene around 
us— ah ! ha ! — maybe to — Then came retrospective visions 
of friends in the far East — till — "what?" — I hardly know 
what — till something, however, like a wish came, that it 
were as easy to float up the Ohio as down. Heyho ! Nor 
was the cabin a fac-simile of those built in dreams and 
novels and magazines. Mine were of bark, and as neat as 
a little girl's baby house! This had, indeed, bark enough 
about, but still not put up poetically. It was in truth a bar- 
barous rectangle of unhewed and unbarked logs, and bound 
together by a gigantic dove-tailing called "notching." 
The roof was of thick, rickety shingles, called "clap- 
boards," which when clapped on were held down by longi- 
tudinal poles kept apart by shorter pieces placed between 



Travel Stories 247 

them periiencliciilarly. The interstices of the log-wall were 
"chinked" — the "chinking" being large chips and small 
slabs dipping like strata of rocks in geolog}^ ; and then on 
the chinking was the "daubing" — a quantity sufficient of 
yelloYv^ clay, ferociously splashed in by the hand of the 
architect, and then left to harden at its leisure. Rain and 
frost had here, however, caused mud daubing to disappear ; 
so that from without could be clearly discerned through the 
wall, the light of fire and candle, and from within, the light 
of sun, moon, and stars — a fair and harmless tit for tat. 

The chimney was outside the cabin and a short distance 
from it. This article was built as boys in rainy weather 
make on the kitchen hearth stick houses of light wood; — 
for it consisted of layers of little logs reposing on one an- 
other at their corners and topped off when high enough 
with flagstones. It was, moreover, daubed, and so admir- 
ably as to look like a mud stack! That, however, was, as 
I afterwards found, inartistical — the daubing of chimneys 
correctly being a very nice task, although just as dirty as 
political daubing. 

The inside cabin had one room below and one loft above 
— to which, however, was no visible ascent. I think the 
folks climbed up at the corner. The room contained prin- 
cipally beds, the other furniture being a table, "stick 
chairs," and some stools with from two to three legs apiece. 
Crockery and calabashes shared the mantel with two dan- 
gerous looking rifles and powder horns. The iron was 
shifted for itself about the fireplace, where awkward feet 
feeling for the fire or to escape it, pushed kettle against 
pot and skillet against dutch oven. 

What French cook committed suicide because something 
was not done "to a turn"? Ample poetic justice may be 
done to his wicked ghost by some smart writer, by chaining 
him with an iambic or two to the jamb of that cabin hearth 
— there forever to be witness of its cookery. There came 
first the pettish outcries of two matron hens dangled along 
to a hasty execution; then notes of preparation sung out 
by the tea-kettle; then was jerked into position the dutch 
oven straddling with three short legs over the burning 



248 Readings in Indiana History 

coals; and iaslly the skillet began sputtering forth its boil- 
ing lard, or grease of some description. The instruments 
ready, the hostess aided by a little barefooted daughter, 
whose white hair was wisped at the top of the head 
with a string and horn comb, the hostess put into the oven 
balls of wet corn meal, and then slapped on the lid red 
hot and covered with coals, with a look and motion equal 
to this sentence — ' ' Get out of that ! till you're done. ' ' Then 
the two fowls, but a moment since lacking and screeching 
at being killed, were doused into the skillet in hot oil, 
where they moved around dismembered, as if indignant 
now at being fried. 

We travellers shifted quarters repeatedly during these 
solemn operations, sometimes to get less heat, sometimes 
more, and sometimes to escape the fumes direct ; but 
usually, to get out of the way. That, however, being im- 
practicable, we at length sat extempore, and were kicked 
and jostled accordingly. In the meanwhile our landlady — 
in whom was much curiosity, a little reverence, and a misty 
idea that her guests were great folks, and towards whom as 
aristocrats it was republican to feel enmity — our landlady 
maintained at intervals a very lively talk, as for example: 

"From Loo'ville, I allow!' 

"No — from Philadelphia. 

A sudden pause — a turn to look at us more narrowly, 
while she still atfectionately patted some wet meal into 
shape for the oven. 

"Well! — now! — I wonder! — hem! Come to enter land, 
'spose — powerful bottom on the Shining — heavy timber, 
though. He's your old man, mam!" 

Mrs. G. assented. The hostess then stooped to deposit 
the perfect ball, and continued : 

"Our wooden country's mighty rough, I allow, for some 
folks — right hard to git gals here, mam, — folks has to be 
thar own niggers, mam — what mougiit your name be!" 

Mrs. C. told the lady, and then in a timid and piteous 
sort of tone inquired if girls could not be hired by the year! 
To this the landlady replied at first with^a stare — then with 
a smile — and then added: 



5 > 



Travel Stories 249 

''Well! sort a allow not — most time, mam, you'll have 
to work your own ash-hopper" — "Nan" — name of little 
flax head — "Nan, sort a turn them thare chickens." 

And thus the cal)in lady kept on doing up her small stock 
of English into Hoosierisms and other figures; now, with 
the question direct — now, the question implied: then with a 
soliloquy — then an apostrophe: and all the time cleaning 
and cutting up chickens, making pones, and working and 
wriggling among pots, skillets and people's limhs and feet, 
with an adroitness and grace gained by practice only; and 
all this, without upsetting anything, scalding any body, or 
even spilling any food — excepting, maybe a little grease, 
flour and salt. Nor did she lose time by dropping down 
curtsey fashion to inspect the progress of things baked or 
fried: but she bent over as if she had hinges in the hips, 
according to nature doubtless, but contrary to the Lady's 
Book; although the backward motion made to balance the 
head projected beyond the base, did render garments short 
by nature still shorter, as grammarians would say, by posi- 
tion. 

Corn-bread takes its own time to bake. Hence it was 
late when the good woman, having placed the "chicken 
fixins' " on a large dinner-plate, and poured over them the 
last drop of unabsorbed and unevaporated oil, set all on 
the table, and then, giving her heated and perspii'ing face 
a last wipe with the corner of her tow-linen apron, and 
also giving her thumb and finger a rub on the same cleanser, 
she sung out the ordinary summons : 

"Well, come, sit up." 

This sit-up wo instantly performed, while she stood 
up to pour out the tea, complimenting all the time its 
quality, saying — " 'Tisn't nun of your spice-wood or yarb 
stuff, but the rele gineine store tea." Nanny remained 
near the dutch oven to keep us supplied with red-hot pones, 
or corn-balls — and hard enough to do execution from can- 
non. The teacups used, held a scant pint; and to do exact 
justice to each cup, the mistress held the teacup in one 
hand and the water-pot in the other, pouring from both at 
once till the cup was brim-full of the mixture: — an admir- 



250 Readings in Indiana History- 

able system of impartiality, and if tlie pots have spouts 
of equal diameters, the very way to make precisely "half 
and half. ' ' But sorry am I to say, that on the present occa- 
sion, the water-pot had the best and easiest delivery. 

''And could you eat, Mr. Carlton?" 

How could we avoid it, Mr. Nice? Besides, we were 
most vulgarly hungry. And the consequence was, that, at 
the arrival of the woodman and his two sons, other corn- 
bread was baked, and, for want of chicken, bacon was fried. 

79. Traveling the ("ircuit 

(From Early Indiana Trials and (iketcTics, by Senator O. II. Smith [1857], 

pp. 168-169.) 

The "Circuit" was the circuit of courts of which there were 
seven in the State. The ''president" judge was appointed by the 
General Assembly. The associate judges were elected by the different 
counties and served also as county commissioners. The president 
judge and the ''great" lawyers traveled together from county to 
county trying "causes." The people flocked to the courts to hear 
the ' ' great ' ' lawyers plead. Their arguments had very little law in 
them but they would declaim till red in the face about liberty, 
justice, national honor, the constitution, and the glories of the 
Revolutionary fathers. It is said Governor James Brown Ray 
could be heard a mile when "pleading." The courts were often 
held out of doors. 

The fall term of the Circuit Court, 1825, found Judge 
Eggleston and myself well mounted, once more on the Cir- 
cuit. The Judge was upon his pacing Indian pony, the same 
that I afterward rode through an electioneering Congres- 
sional campaign ; I then rode my ' ' Gray Fox. ' ' We were 
joined at Centerville by James Eariden, mounted on ''Old 
Gray," one of the finest animals I have ever seen. Our 
Court was to be held on the next Monday at Fort AVayne. 
We reached Winchester late in the evening and took lodg- 
ings at the hotel of Paul W. Way. 

After early breakfast we were once more upon our 
horses, with one hundred miles through the wilderness be- 
fore us. There were two Indian paths that led to Fort 
Wayne, the one by chief Francis Godfroy's on the Sala- 



Travel Stories 251 

moiiia river, the other in a more easterly direction, cross- 
ing the Mississinewa higher up and striking the ''Quaker 
trace" from Eiehmond to Fort Wayne, south of the head 
waters of the Wabash river. After a moment's consulta- 
tion, Mr. Rariden, who was our guide, turned the head of 
''Old Gray" to the eastern path, and off we started, at a 
brisk travelling gait in high spirits. The day passed away ; 
it was very hot, and there was no water to be had for our- 
selves or horses. About one o'clock we came to the Wabash 
river, nearly dried up, but there was grass upon the bank 
for our horses, and we dismounted, took off the saddles, 
blankets and saddle-bags, when the question arose, should 
we hold the horses while they grazed, tie them to bushes, 
spancel them, or turn them loose? We agreed that the 
latter was the best for the horses and the easiest for us, 
but I raised the question of safety, and brought up the old 
adage, "Safe bind, safe find." Mr. Rariden. — "You could 
not drive Old Gray away from me." Judge Eggleston. — 
"My Indian pony will never leave me." I made no prom- 
ises for my "Gray Fox." The bridles were taken off, and 
the horses turned loose to graze. A moment later. Old 
Gray stuck up his head, turned to the path we had just 
come, and bounded off* at a full gallop, swarming with flies, 
followed by the pacing pony of the Judge, at his highest 
speed. Fox lingered behind, but soon became infected with 
the bad example of his associates, and away they all went, 
leaving us sitting under the shade of a tree that stood for 
years afterward on the bank of the Wabash. Our horses 
were, a week afterward, taken up at Fort Defiance, in Ohio, 
and brought to us at Winchester on our return. It took us 
but a moment to decide what to do. Ten miles would take 
us to Thompson's on Townsend's Prairie. Our saddles and 
blankets were hung up above the reach of the wolves. Each 
took his saddle-bags on his back, and started at a quickstep 
— Rariden in the lead. Judge Eggleston in the center, and 
I brought up the rear. The heat was intense. None of us 
had been much used to walking. 

Near night we reached the prairie worn down with heat 
and fatigue. The thunders were roaring and the lightnings 



252 Readings in Indiana History 

flashing from the black clouds in the west. A storm was 
coming up on the wings of a hurricane, and ten minutes 
after we arrived at Mr. Thompson's it broke upon us in 
all its fury, and continued raining in torrents during the 
night. We were in a low, one story cabin, about twenty 
feet square, no floor above, mth a clapboard roof. Sup- 
per, to us, dinner, was soon ready. Three articles of diet 
were on the plain walnut table, corn-dodgers, boiled squir- 
rels, and sassafras tea. To us it was sumptuous and thank- 
fully received. Supper over, we soon turned in, and such 
a night of sweet sleep I never had before or since. The 
next morning our saddles and blankets were brought to us 
from the Wabash. The landlord provided us with ponies 
and we set forward at full speed, and arrived at Fort Wayne 
that night. 

80. Travel on the Old National Road 

(From Indiana Magazine of Histori/, III, pp. TG-7S ; article by Benjamin 

S. Parker [1903].) 

This road at first ran from Cumberland, Maryland, to the Ohio 
river at Wheeling, and was called the Cumberland Road. Later 
is was decided to extend it to St. Louis by way of Columbns, In- 
dianapolis, and Vandalia, the three State capitals. The railroads 
overtook it at Terre Haute and it was completed no further. It 
reached Wheeling in 1818, Columbus (Ohio) in 1833, Indianapolis 
in 1834, and was opened — i. e., trees removed but road not built — 
to Vandalia in 1852. The schedule of the mail stage from Wash- 
ington, D. C, was thirty hours to Wlieeling, forty-five to Columbus, 
sixty to Indianapolis, and seventy-five to Vandalia. See selection 
number 66. 

From morning till night there was a continual rumble 
of wheels, and, when the rush was greatest, there was never 
a minute that wagons were not in sight, and as a rule, one 
company of wagons was closely followed by another. 

Many families occupied two or more of the big road 
wagons then in use, with household goods and their imple- 
ments, while extra horses, colts, cattle, sheep and some- 
times hogs were led or driven behind. Thus, when five or 
ten families were moving in company, the procession of 



Travel Stories 253 

wagons, men, women, children and stock was quite lengthy 
and imposing. The younger women often drove the teams, 
while the men and boys walked by turns, to drive and look 
after the stock; and now and then there would be an old- 
fashioned carriage, set upon high wheels to go safely over 
stumps and through streams. The older women and little 
children occuijied these, and went bobbing up and down on 
the great leather springs which were the fashion sixty years 
ago. 

But everybody did not travel in that way. Single fam- 
ilies, occupying only a single one or two-horse wagon or 
cart, frequently passed along, seeming as confident and 
hopeful as the others; while even the resolute family, the 
members of which carried their worldly possessions upon 
their backs or pushed them forward in hand-wagons, was 
not an unfamiliar spectacle to the little boys who watched 
by the way. 

The wagons, horses and other belongings of the movers 
were fair indications, not only of their worldly condition 
and intelligence, but also of the sections from whence they 
came. The great Pennsylvania wagons, with their elab- 
orately panelled beds, running up high in front and rear, 
were also used by the better-to-do Virginians and Caro- 
linians, with this difference, that the Pennsylvania wagons 
were very large and often drawn by four or six fine horses, 
well-matched for size and color, while the Virginians and 
Carolinians seldom drove more than two horses. A com- 
pany of these well-to-do movers with their great wagons, 
large, well-groomed horses in heavy harness, glittering with 
brass-headed rivets, rings and other ornaments, with bows 
of melodious bells, either above the points of the hames or 
upon the heavy backhands, and with great housings of bear- 
skin covering the shoulders and red plumes nodding from 
the headgear, was a sight that the small boy put down in 
his book of memory, never to be forgotten. 

Very different from these were the little Southern carts, 
drawn by the little, bony Southern horses. It is a matter of 
tradition that numbers of these little Carolina wagons and 



254 Readings in Indiana History 

carts were wrought of the tough young oak timber that grew 
upon the old fields of the South, and that the wood was so 
tenacious of fiber and the vehicles so well constructed by 
the rural wagon-makers, that they stood up through the 
journey over the mountains and along the roughest of roads 
without the aid of so much as an iron nail, and without tires 
or any kind of metal brace. The feet of the horses or mules 
that drew them were also guiltless of iron, and the children 
in the villages and upon the farms were quick to discover 
the arrival of a new Carolina family by the tracks of the 
tireless wheels and shoeless horses. 

With the tinkling of the bells, the rumbling of the wheels, 
the noise of the animals, and the chatter of the people as 
they went forward, the little boy who had gone to the road 
from his lonesome home in the woods was captivated and 
carried away into the great active world. But the greatest 
wonder and delight of all was ihe stage coach, radiant in 
new paint and drawn by its four matched horses in their 
showy harness, and filled inside and on top with well-dressed 
people. I think yet that there has never been a more grace- 
ful or handsome turnout than one of these fine old stage- 
coaches drawn by a splendid team of matched horses, and 
driven by such drivers as used to handle the ribbons be- 
tween Richmond and Indianapolis. We could hear the 
driver playing his bugle as he approached the little town, 
and it all seemed too grand and fine to be other than a 
dream. 

81. Along the Wabash and Erie Canal 

(From The Wahash, by J. Richard Beste [1855], II, pp. 191-190.) 

For an account of Mr. Beste 's travels, see introduction to selec- 
tion 67. 

At five o'clock in the afternoon, we stepped from the 
little quay at Terre Haute on board the Indiana canal boat. 
Three horses were harnessed to a rope, about fifty yards 
ahead of the boat ; they started at a moderate trot ; and 
the town, where we had tarried so long, was soon lost to 
our sight. No other passengers were on board : and we 



Travel Stories 25 c 

wandered over the vessel, well pleased with the promise it 
gave ns of tolerable accommodation. The captain, a very 
young man, was civil and attentive to our wants : arrd 
told us that tea would be served at seven o'clock, which 
there, on that day, was the precise hour of sunset. 

The construction of the canal boat was — in miniature — 
much the same as that of the lake and river steamers. There 
was no hold or under-deck; but, on the deck at the stern, 
were raised the kitchen, steward's room, and offices; in 
the center of the boat, was the large saloon — the sitting 
room of all by day, the sleeping room of male passengers 
by night — adjoining it was the ladies' saloon; beyond which 
again, was a small cabin containing only four berths. This 
cabin was separated by a doorway and curtain from the 
ladies' saloon, and on the other side opened upon the bow 
of the vessel. In it, was a looking-glass, a hand basin, two 
towels, a comb and a brush, for the use of the ladies. 

It was a rule in the boats that no gentlemen should go 
into the ladies' saloon without express invitation from the 
ladies. Consequently, the third little room was sacred to 
the female sex unless entered from the bow, in which case a 
male occupant would cut off the ladies from their wash- 
house. Dr. Read had, however, declared that it was neces- 
sary that I should have this small room, in order that I 
might be' secure from the draughts and night air that 
would be let into the men's saloon at night: and the canal 
boat agents at Terre Haute had contracted to secure the 
same for me throughout the length of the passage. Dr. 
Read had particularly insisted on this, fearing that the 
slightest chill would produce a return of the illness from 
which I was, in truth, scarcely convalescent. 

A flat roof spread over the whole of the saloons; and 
on it was piled the luggage; and here passengers walked up 
and down or sat to enjoy the view. 

The viev\", however, as yet ''was nought:" the banks 
were low ; and thick woods, in which were only partial clear- 
ings, shut us in on both sides. I have omitted to mention 
that the climate of Terre Haute had, of late, been rendered 



256 Readings in Indiana History 

much more salubrious than it formerly was by the flooding 
of a large wood. Somewhere about here, there had been 
a marshy valley covered with a magnificent timber; but 
reeking also, with a miasma that poisoned all those around. 
By the advice of Dr. Read, the waters of the Wabash had 
been let into the hollow, and the whole valley turned into 
a lake, flooding the timber as it stood. Fancy such a waste 
of timber in ''the old country" within a short distance of 
the water carriage ! There it still stood, rotting away ; and, 
it was asserted that the pestilential vapor no longer arose 
from this "drained bog," as an Irish emigrant described it 
to me. 

Our children had wondered where they were to sleep, 
as there were no visible berths amid the red moreen cur- 
tains that hung round the ladies' saloon, to give it an air 
of comfort in this August weather; they dreaded to have 
to pass four nights on the floor, as they had done at Mrs. 
Long's hotel; but they said they were now more used to 
hardships than they had then been; and they, also, drew 
comparative comfort from seeing a washhand basin and two 
towels, instead of that amiable American woman's small 
tin pie-dish. The steward, however, soon solved their 
doubts by hooking-up some shelves to the wall, and laying 
mattresses and sheets upon them. 

We were sununoned to tea ; but, after the good living of 
the Prairie House, all complained of the bad tea and coffee, 
of the hot heavy corn bread, and of the raw beefsteak. 

"After tea, we all began," writes Agnes, "a most mur- 
derous attack upon the mosquitoes that swarmed on the 
windows and inside our berths, in expectation of feasting 
upon us as soon as we should go to bed. But those on 
whom we made war, were soon replaced by others ; and the 
more we killed, the more they seemed to come to be killed, 
like Mrs. Bond's ducks: it was as though they would defy 
us to exterminate the race. At last, we gave up the task 
as hopeless, and resigned ourselves, as well as we could, 
to pass a sleepless night." 



CHAPTER XIV 

PIONEER SOCIETY 

The life of the Hoosier pioneers was not all hardship and de- 
privation. They had many pleasures and amusements to relieve 
their hard lot. Of course there were no theaters, Sunday excursions 
or lea^ie baseball games, or other more genteel amusements to 
which we are accustomed today, but there was no lack of whole- 
some fun and frolic. Above all there was about it a hearty and 
jovial spirit that is absent in our modern commercialized merry- 
making. Our fathers lived an isolated life in sparsely settled 
communities ; so, any neighborhood social event was anticipated 
with a delight and glee that was almost childish in its nature. So- 
cial pleasures, too, were largely connected with the neighborhood 
taslss of the settlers. If logs were to be rolled, the neighbors as- 
sembled to roll them ; if a cabin was to be built, the pioneers came 
for miles around to assist. There were corn-huskings, wool-shear- 
ings, apple-parings, sugar-boilings, quilting-bees, and hog-killings. 

82. The Hoosier's Nest 

(From Coggeshall, The Poets and Poetri) of the West, i). 84; poem by John 

FiNLEY [1830].) 

I'm told, in riding somewhere West, 

A stranger found a Hoosier's nest. 

In other words, a Buckeye cabin. 

Just big enough to hold Queen Mab in. 

Its situation low, but airy, 

Was on the borders of a prairie; 

And fearing he might be benighted. 

He hailed the house, and then alighted. 

The Hoosier met him at the door, 

Their salutations soon were o'er. 

He took the stranger's horse aside. 

And to a sturdy sapling tied ; 

Then, having stripped the saddle off, 

He fed him in a sugar-trough. 

17—1643 (257) 



258 Readings in Indiana History 

The stranger stooped to enter in, 

The entrance closing with a pin; 

And manifested strong desire 

To sit down by the log-heap fire, 

Where half a dozen Hoosieroons, 

With mush and milk, tin-cups and spoons, 

Wliite heads, bare feet and dirty faces, 

Seemed much inclined to keep their places ; 

But madam, anxious to display 

Her rough but undisputed sway, 

Her offspring to the ladder led. 

And cuffed the youngsters up to bed. 

Invited shortly to partake, 

Of venison, milk, and johnny-cake; 

The stranger made a hearty meal, 

And glances round the room would steal. 

One side was lined with divers garments, 

The other, spread with skins of varmints ; 

Dried pumpkins overhead were strung. 

Where venison hams in plenty hung; 

Two rifles placed above the door. 

Three dogs lay stretched upon the floor — 

In short, the domicile was rife 

With specimens of Hoosier life. 

The host, who center 'd his affections 

On game, and range and quarter sections. 

Discoursed his weary guest for hours. 

Till Somnus' all-composing powers. 

Of sublunary cares bereft 'em; 

And then I came away, and left 'em. 

82a. Some Hoosier Characteristics 

(From Indiana Universitij Alnmni Quarterly, I, 283-286; address by David 

Demaree Banta [1891].) 

The following view of the leading characteristics of the pioneer 
Hoosier stock was given in an address at Indiana University in 
1891. Judge Banta was then at an advanced age and had lived 
through the pioneer times which he describes : 



Pioneer Society 259 

Without going into an extended discussion of what, at 
this late and let us hope better day, may be regarded in the 
light of characteristics of the people of Indiana in the time 
of the early history of our State, it will aid you, I trust, to 
a somewhat better understanding of the men and events of 
the times to keep in mind one or two of the most prominent 
characteristics of the Indianians of the period. 

I believe if I were asked to give a name to what I con- 
ceived to be the most prominent characteristic of the Indi- 
ana man of that time I should say. Pugnacity. It is true 
this is a characteristic he had in common with all other 
Western men, but it was his characteristic nevertheless, and 
he possessed it in a high degree. 

Next to his pugnacious spirit came a characteristic which 
for want of a better name may be called a spirit of intensity. 
Men felt more than they thought. More than is the case 
to-day they were given to act upon impulse rather than from 
reason. They were more emotional and were easier to be 
moved by the orator than is the case now. They felt more 
intensely than we do. They were more apt to act under the 
inspiration of the ' ' hurrah, ' ' than are we. There was more 
of the "nobly wild and extravagant" in the character of 
that day than this. Those w^ere the days when the river 
hero was ' ' half horse and half alligator ' ' ; when the country 
hero was a ' ' six-horse-team- with-a-bull-dog-under-the-wag- 
on." It was a day when a militia brigadier-general could 
empty a barrel of whiskey and a half barrel of sugar into a 
public well and receive the plaudits of the battalion. 

It was this intense, impetuous, extravagant spirit which 
drove the State not long after this time into that disastrous 
internal improvements system, the evil effects of which have 
scarcely yet disappeared. 

After these characteristics, I would mention patriotism, 
sectarianism and orthodoxy, partisanship and sensitiveness. 
The Indianian was intensely and pugnaciously patriotic, sec- 
tarian and orthodox, partisan and sensitive. 

Most of these characteristics belonged to him in common 
with all other Western people, but not all. He was sensitive 
to criticism from outsiders as was no other people in all the 



260 Readings in Indiana History 

Mississippi Valley. Why? Well, he got more of it. There 
was a time in the history of our State when it was the fash- 
ion to "poke fun" at Indiana, and everybody did it. Why 
so? Taken all in all, it may be assumed that the early set- 
tlers of Indiana were the poorest class of men, in so far as 
money was concerned, that ever settled any State in the Val- 
ley — a circumstance, however, not to be mentioned to tlieir 
discredit. A large per cent of them had been impoverished 
by the Revolutionary War, or were the descendants of 
those who had been so impoverished. A still larger per cent 
emigrated to the State to escape the curse of slavery. 

Of all the Western States, Indiana presented the greatest 
natural obstacles to the homemaker. Its forests were not 
excelled in any State, while the generally swampy condition 
of the country made it a peculiarly difficult one in which to 
make farms and found prosperous settlements. Add to 
these drawbacks the scourge of the autumnal sickness 
which prevailed from the Wabash to the Big Miami, and we 
see abundant reason why the State was kept back in the 
march of progress. It was no reflection upon the people of 
Indiana that their development in material wealth was slow ; 
that they had bad roads, poor schools, and the "fever and 
ague. ' ' 

But because of these and kindred misfortunes Indiana 
(dare I say it, even yet, and even here?) — Indiana became a 
by-word. Indiana, her people, her roads, her sickness, her 
poverty, her fever and ague, was made the target for all the 
weak newspaper criticisms and stupid jokes of the entire 
country. 

Almost from the foundation of the first American settle- 
ment within the Indiana border, the defamation began. 
Lawrenceburg and vicinity were settled mainly with men 
from Maine, Massachusetts, and Connecticut, but not long is 
it before w^e find these representatives of the cultured East 
engaged in a war of epithets with their Kentucky neighbors 
on the south side of the Ohio. The Kentuckians screamed 
"Hoosier," the Indianians shouted back "Algerine. " The 
latter word has been forgotten — absorbed in "Corn Crack- 
er," possibly — but "Hoosier" has stuck. Who knows its 



Pioneer Society 261 

genesis f No one, nor its meaning. It came from without — 
that seems certain; and was used at first as an epithet of 
reproach. It did not need to have a meaning in the begin- 
ning — nay, it served the better purpose without a meaning; 
for it was enough to cry ''Hoosier!" "Hoosier!" to make 
the Indianians, from the Oliio to the outermost verge of the 
settlements, grit their teeth and curse their tormentors. 
Of course it hurt. No man — no men — will endure to be 
made game of. Jeer at, jibe at, laugh at, poke fun at the 
best man in your town, and you will soon have him fighting 
or crying. 

There came a time when we no longer cared, but it was 
long after 1830. The truth is, our State and our people and 
their ways continued to be the fruitful themes of jests and 
criticisms till the war. Till that period the Ohio people 
looked disdainfully across the border at us, and even the 
wretched Suckers, our brethren on the West, turned up their 
noses at us ; while as for the Kentuckians — well, how unctu- 
ously they could give us their African pronunciation of 
'^Hoosiah!" 

As late as 1854 the natural and necessary effect of all this 
odious criticism was to develop that sensitive characteristic 
of which I have before spoken. It is a characteristic the in- 
fluence of which I am told is still felt in some of the staid and 
out-of-the-way places of southern and central Indiana, but I 
think this is scarcely true. But at and before and for some 
time after 1830, its influence was felt in every neighborhood. 
I can best describe the Indiana people of that period as 
standing huddled, ' ' snouts out, ' ' on the defensive. All new- 
comers were suspected, all friendly critics were snubbed. 
Foreign teachers were received with misgiving, and there 
was a strong undercurrent of belief that a college under the 
control of such teachers would in some way become inimical 
to the best interests of the State. 



262 Readings in Indiana History 

83. Social Gatherings in Pioneer Times 

(From Indiana Magazine of History, X, No. 2; article by Frederick Vogel 

[1912].) 

The pioneer himself could fell the trees of his farm, 
cut them into proper lengths, clear away the brush and 
limbs, but in order to roll the logs into heaps for burning, 
he was compelled to call in his neighbors. On the appointed 
day they all came, they and their wives and children, the 
men to pile the logs and the women to cook for the feast 
that always followed the work. Log-rollings, at first sight, 
do not suggest fun and pleasure, yet they were eagerly 
looked forward to, especially by the young people. Such 
undertakings meant much hard work, even excessive work ; 
nevertheless the toil itself was turned into sport and play. 
When the last log was in position feasting and enjoyment 
began. 

Usually the men were divided into two divisions, and 
the clearing was apportioned so as to give each division 
relatively the same amount of work. Each chose an ex- 
perienced man as leader and, when once begun, the contest 
never flagged. The section which first disposed of the last 
log was declared the winner. This was no little honor, for 
the victory would be discussed in other settlements and 
praises of the heroes sung far and wide. As great indi- 
vidual rivalry occurred among the j^ounger men, some 
amazing feats of strength were performed. A favorite test 
was to determine which of two men could outlift the other, 
each lifting at one end of a log with a handspike. After 
the work was done the log heaps were fired, and a hundred 
bonfires reddened the sky. A more beautiful sight can 
scarcely be pictured. 

Log rollings were especially frequented by candidates 
and politicians. Here they had an opportunity to present 
their claims and defend themselves against trivial or un- 
founded charges. But such seekers were required to show 
their mettle. Sometimes rival candidates were assigned as 
leaders of opposing sections of workers. Then work pro- 
ceeded under the highest stress. In fact some enterpris- 
ing farmers, it is said, made a practice of deferring their 



Pioneer Society 26^ 

log rollings until campaign time (some kind of election was 
held every year), about a month preceding the election, in 
order to reap the benefit of the labor and enthusiasm of the 
various candidates. 

After the hard day's work, the boys and young men 
were still equal to foot races, wrestling matches, pole-vault- 
ing, tug-of-war, laj)-jacket, and other feats of skill on which 
the young fellows prided themselves Pitching quoits was 
also a favorite pastime on such occasions. 

The husking of corn was an important work and was a 
neighborhood affair. Both sexes participated. They us- 
ually assembled in a large barn which was arranged for the 
occasion where they sat in a circle and played ^'brogue it 
about" while they worked. Each gentleman selected a lady 
partner when the husking began, and under the zest of 
frolic the work progressed with surprising rapidity. When 
a lady found a red ear she was entitled to a kiss from every 
gentleman present; when a gentleman found one he was 
entitled to kiss every lady present. After the corn was 
all husked a good supper was served. Then, after the old 
folks had left, the remainder of the evening was spent in 
dancing and games. 

Of equal importance was the quilting-bee where the 
women had their gossip. In the afternoon, ladies for miles 
around gathered at the appointed home to manufacture 
warm quilts, often of curious pattern and design. Such 
meetings were busy news exchanges, for the women could 
gossip as they worked. As soon as the quilt was "got oif" 
the entertainment began. In the evening the men came and 
the time was spent by the young people in games and danc- 
ing. 

Bounteous feasting always accompanied the hard labor 
of neighborhood gatherings. A meal of venison, roast tur- 
key, fried chicken, hominy, ham and eggs, potatoes, wild 
hog, steaming cornbread, hot biscuits, gingerbread, pre- 
serves, jellies, tarts, pies, and good milk and butter, all set 
on a large table about which the workers gathered, could 
not fail to satisfy the appetite of an epicure. Good cider 
was always at hand to moisten thirsty tongues. Total 



264 Readings in Indiana History 

abstinence was not in fashion in those days, and the farmer 
who did not snpply his hands with liquor was considered 
sting}^ indeed. A jug of whiskey was considered necessary 
for any undertaking of importance. The beverage was 
home-made and often of such strength that it was likely to 
sour or freeze. 

84. The Shooting-Match 

(From The Neic Purchase, by Baynard R. Hall [1855], pp. 104-113.) 

Grienville and myself were once, on some mercantile af- 
fairs, traveling in an adjoining county, when we came sud- 
denly on a party preparing to shoot at a mark; and from 
the energ}^ of words and gestures it was plain enough a 
prize of unusual importance was proposed. We halted a 
moment, and found the stake to be a half -barrel of whiskey. 
If ever, then and there was to be sharp-shooting ; and with- 
out question, then and there was present every chap in the 
settlement who could split a bullet on his knife-blade or take 
the rag off the bush. 

"Glenville, " I said, seized with a sudden whim, "lend 
me fifty cents ; I mean to shoot. ' ' 

"Nonsense! Carlton; you can't win here; and if you 
could, what does the president of a temperance society want 
with a barrel of whiskey?" 

"John, if I can find a gun here anything like my own, 
I can win. And although I have never before won or lost 
a penny, I shall risk half a dollar now for the fun of the 
thing, and to have the satisfaction of knocking yonder bar- 
rel in the head and letting out the stuff into the branch 
here. ' ' 

After some further discussion Glenville acquiesced, and 
we drew near the party; where, dismounting, I made the 
following speech and proposal : 

"Well, gentlemen, I think I can outshoot any man on 
the ground, if you will let us come in and any neighbor here 
will allow me to shoot his gun, in case I can find one to my 
notion ; and here is my fifty cents for the chance. But, 
gentlemen and fellow-citizens, I intend to be right out and 
out like a backwoodsman; and so you must all know we 






Pioneer Society 265 

are cold water men, and don't believe in whiskey; and so, 
in case we win, the barrel is, you know, ours, and then I 
shall knock the article in the head. But then we are willing 
to pay either in money or temperance tracts the amount of 
treat every gentleman will get if any body else wins." 

To this a fine, hardy-looking farmer, apparently some 
sixty years old, and evidently the patriarch of the settle- 
ment, replied: 

"Well, stranger, come on; you're a powerful honest 
man anyhow ; and here 's my hand to it ; if you win, which 
will be sort a tough on you, though, you may knock the 
stingo in the head, and stranger, you kin have this here gun 
of mine, or Long Jake's there ; or any one you have a notion 
on. How do you shoot 1 ' ' 

' ' Offhand, neighbor ; any allowance f " 

''Yes; one hundred yards with a rest; eighty-five yards 
offhand." 

"Agreed. 

"Agreed. 

More than thirty persons were assembled, out of whom 
had been selected seven as the best marksmen; but these, 
induced by the novelty, having good-naturedly admitted me, 
we were now eight. Of the eight, five preferred to shoot 
with a rest; but the old Achates, the sapling woodman — Tall 
Jake — that had stepped off the distances, and myself, were 
to fire offhand. All the rifles were spontaneously off'ered 
for the stranger's use. I chose, however, Tall Jake's; 
for although about a pound too heavy, it sighted like my 
own, and went as easy on the triggers, and carried one 
hundred and eighty balls to the pound — only five more than 
mine, which carried one hundred and seventy-five. 

Auditors and spectators now formed the double lines, 
standing, stooping, and lying in very picturesque attitudes 
some fifteen feet each side the range of the firing, and 
that away down towards the target tree; liehind which 
several chaps, as usual, planted themselves to announce, at 
each crack, the result of the shot. 

Well, the firing at length began. I have no distinct 
recollection of every shot. Now and then, a central ball 



266 Readings in Indiana History 

was announced, and that followed by two others a full 
inch or may be an inch and an eighth even, from the center , 
and once, where two successive balls were within the dia- 
mond, the third, by some mischance, struck on the very 
edge of the grand circle. Balls, too, were sometimes plant- 
ed in three different corners of the paper — very good 
separate shots — yet proving want of a steady and artistical 
sighting, or even a little experimenting with the edges of 
the hind sight ; which was owing, doubtless, to drawing the 
bead to the edge, and not the bottom. 

A smart young fellow having made two very fair shots, 
boasted so grandly of his new rifle, that a grave, middle- 
aged hunter offered to bet a pound of lead, that if the young 
chap would allow him, after the gnn rested for the shot, to 
rub his hand from the lock to the muzzle, he would so be- 
witch the rifle that she would miss the big tree. This was 
all agreed to ; and then, such as knew how to bewitch rifles 
rapidly retreated to our rear, and such as did not were 
beckoned and called till they came. All ready, the young 
man on the ground, and his rifle on its rest, our conjuror 
ran his hand slowly along the barrel, and pausing an in- 
stant at the muzzle, and uttering an incantation, and then 
going behind the marksman, he bade him fire when he liked. 
This he did; and marvelous enough it was — the ball not 
only missed the shingle, but struck nowhere in the tree! 
Great was the astonishment and mortification of the youth ; 
but we magnanimously allowed him a shot extra and with- 
out witchcraft, his countenance brightened, and especially 
when his ball now spoiled the inner edge of his diamond. 

Perhaps you are curious and wish to learn how to be- 
witch a rifle! I will tell you on one condition : — all the 
spectators when a rifle is bewitched must be made to come 
to the rear of the firing party. Here is the recipe : let the 
rifle doctor conceal in his hand a bullet small enough for the 
purpose, and on rubbing as far as the muzzle, let him as 
adroitly as possible deposit said bullet just within the said 
muzzle — safely betting any number of pounds of leadv that 
whatever else the marksman may hit, he cannot hit his 
shingle. (N. B. See that the rifle to be bewitched Ms' no 



Pioneer Society 267 

triggers set, and is not on cock; otherwise two tartars of 
a very unpleasant cliaracter may be caught by the rifle 
doctor.) 

One man only took to his stomach — the technical term 
was to fire on his — hem! — but as his long-rest turned a 
little at the third shot, the unerring bullet, following the 
guidance of the barrel, stuck itself plumb outside the cir- 
cumference named, and thus nullifying one true central ball, 
and one in the lower interior point or angle of his diamond. 
Another man was still more unfortunate. After two most 
excellent shots, his gun hanging fire at the third, he bawled 
out, ' ' No shot ' ' ! which being a notification before the shot 
could be examined and reported, entitled him to another 
trial ; but alas ! the ball thus tabooed had grazed the center ! 
Again his gun hung fire; but now he did not veto; and 
his bullet was found sticldng in the tree an honest foot 
above the top of his shingle ! 

And now we, who fired offhand, and thereby professed 
to be "crack" shots — -yet most marksmen make a noise here 
— we began to make ready. We higgled a little as to who 
should lead off; not to show politeness as well-bred folks in 
entering rooms and carriages, but because all were the least 
bit, however, cowed, and each wished to see what his neigh- 
bor could do first. Wlien that kind of spirit comes crawling 
over a body in rifle-shooting, it must be banished in an in- 
stant. The effect in oratory may be a very good speech — 
unless you stump — but in our art, it is always a very bad 
shot. Our noble art demands calmness and the most imper- 
turbable self-possession; and that, at the beginning, the 
middle, the ending of the exercises. And so I said: — 

'^Well, gentlemen, if you want to see where to plant 
your balls, I'm the one, I think, to show you" — 

"Wliy no, stranger," — replied the old Achates — "I 
allow that aint fair nither, to let you lead off. We're all 
neighborlike here, and 'tis only right you should see what 
we kin do fust. I sort a suppose maybe it will save you the 
trouble of shootin' anyhow. So come. Long Jake, crack 
away and I'll foller — and arter, you, stranger, may shoot 
or jist as you like best." 



268 Readings in Indiana History 

"Agreed, grandaddie," responded Long Jake, "so here 
goes." And then Jake, after returning from the old beech, 
where he had put up his target, and with firmness and grace 
stepped onto the line. Two things and only two gave me 
hope, viz. : he shut his left eye and held on the diamond 
without rising or falling perpendicularly to do it : but then 
he held that rifle as if it were the true horizon — and then — 
click — snap — but no report. Lucky snap for me! I knew 
it must have been a central ball; but still better for me — 
Jake was embarrassed a little. Shaking out the damp pow- 
der he primed afresh, and again began his aim. Now, how- 
ever, a very slight vibration seemed to glimmer on his 
barrel, and when he did fire, I was not disappointed nor 
greatly displeased at the cry from the fellow that leaped 
from behind the target tree — ' ' rite hand corner, grazing the 
dimind!" Again Jake loaded, raised his piece, and fired 
at first sight, and the cry now came — ' ' center ! ' ' This in- 
creased my neighbor's confidence, and happily lessened his 
carefulness; for sighting, as he himself afterwards con- 
fessed, "leetle bit coarsish like," the cry now was — "line 
shot, scant quarter 'bove center ! ' ' 

"Come, grandaddie," said Jake to the old gentleman as 
he walked up to the line from adjusting his sliingle, "you 
must do a little better nor that, or maybe we'll lose our 
stingo, for I know by the way this stranger here handles 
my rifle, he's naterally a hard chap to beat." 

This speech was occasioned by my handling the gun, 
taking aim, setting triggers, etc., in order to get better 
acquainted with the piece; which experiments resulted 
in a secret and hearty wish for my own gun. 

"Well, Jake, I allow yours kin be beat a bit," replied 
our veteran, taking his position on the line. At a glance to- 
wards his "toot en sembell," Mr. Carlton, too, allowed he 
had met his match — and, perhaps even with his own gun. 
How grand the calmness as if in no battle ! How alive mus- 
cle and feature — as if in the midst of enemies ! There he is 
dropping his bead — ay, his eyes both wide awake, and he 
raised the piece till that bead dims on the lower point of 
his diamond — a flash — and from the tree — "center!" He 



Pioneer Society 269 

was soon again ready, and at liis second flash, came the 
QYy — "upper edge, fust hole!" and that cry was answered 
along the gradually narrowing crowded lines, by the whole 
company — "hurraw" for grandaddie — Imrraw-aw!" His 
third shot, brought from the tree — '4ee-e-tle tor'ds rite of 
corner of dimind — jeest grazed center!" and was answered 
by — *' grandaddie for ever, hurraw-aw-aw — !" 

''Carlton," maliciously whispered Glenville, ''the 
stingo is safe — anti-temperance beats!" 

I felt honor demanded, however, a trial ; and so request- 
ing Grlenville to fix as I should direct my target, I stood on 
the line of firing, sighting several times with open pan and 
no priming ; until the mark exactly suited, when I cried out 
— "stand clear!" And now, supposing Jake's rifle sighted 
like my own, and threw its ball a little above its bead — as 
indeed is best — I drew up as usual, with rapidity, and let 
fly just as the bead caught the lower tip of my diamond, the 
report instantly returned, being — "inside lower pint of 
dimind, scant quarter, b 'low centre ! ' ' 

"Blame close, stranger," said the old hero, "but I allow 
you'll have to mend it to beat me." 

"Praise from you, my old friend, is worth something — 
I'll try my best to satisfy you." 

Jake's rifle was now understood; she sent balls exactly 
where she was aimed, and not as mine, and most good rifles, 
an eighth of an inch above. Making, therefore, my front 
sight a hair thicker and fuller in the hind sight, and coming 
full on the lower angle of my diamond — "Center" was 
echoed from the tree and along the lines — "hurraw-aw! for 
the stranger!" 

"You're most powerful good at it," said the old gentle- 
man, "but my line's a leetle the shortest yet." 

"Well, my good old friend, here goes to make yours a 
little the longest" — and away, along between the unflinch- 
ing lines of excited spectators, whistled my third and last 
ball, bringing back the cry — "lee-e-tle b'low the centre — 
broke in first hole ! ' ' But, while all rushed to the examina- 
tion and measurements, confined to our two shingles, no 
exultation burst forth, it being doubtful, or, as the hunters 



270 Readings in Indiana History 

said, ' ' a sort of dub 'us whether the stingo was grandaddie 's, 
or the stranger's." In a few moments, however, and by 
the most honorable and exact measurements, it was de- 
cided that the old Achates had "the shorter string by near 
about half the bredth of his buUit!" And then such uproar 
rose of mingled hurraws — screams — shrieks — yells — and 
outcries ! an uproar none but true honest-hearted far 
westers, unadulterated by foreign or domestic scum, ever 
did or can make. 

The hurricane over, the victor mounting a log made the 
following speech : 

"Well, naburs, it's my sentimental opinyin this stran- 
ger's acted up, clean up, to the notch, and is most powerful 
clever. And I think if he'd fired his own gun as how he 
mought a come out even, and made up the leetle matter 
of ditf'runce closest of any other chap, young or old, in 
these 'ere diggins — and so, says I, let's have three cheers 
for the stranger, and three more for his friend." 

Oh! dear reader! could you have heard the old, dark 
woods ring then ! — I struggled hard, you may be sure ; but 
what was the use, the tears would come ! 

We both made replies to the compliment; and in con- 
cluding, — for I mounted the log last — I touched on the wish 
we really had to do good, and that nothing was better for 
hardy, brave, and noble w^oodsmen, than temperance. 

"Well, stranger, both on you," replied that very grand 
old man, ' ' you shan 't be disa 'p 'inted. You depended on our 
honor — and so, says I, if these 'ere naburs here aint no 
objection, let them that want to, first take a suck of stingo 
for a treat, and then, says I, let's all load up and crack away 
at the cask, and I'll have fust shot." 

"Agreed! Agreed! hurraw for grandaddie Tomsin! 
hurraw for the strangers ! — hurraw for the temperance 
society! — load up, boys, load up! — nobody wants a suck — 
crack away, grandaddie — crack away, we're all ready!" 
And crack went old Brave's rifle — crack long Jake's — crack 
the brave Gyas, and the brave Cleanthus — and crack every 
rifle in the company: and there rolled the wounded half- 
barrel, pouring his own death-dealing contents through its 



Pioneer Society 271 

perforated heads and sides, till soon the stingo was all ab- 
sorbed in the moist earth of the forest. 

Glenville and I now "gathered horse and put out" higli- 
ly pleased with the events : and a few weeks after we were 
still more pleased, at hearing that all the company at the 
prize-shooting that day had become members of the tem- 
perance society. If, therefore, any old-fashioned temper- 
ance societ}^ wishes champions to shoot, provided ' ' gran- 
daddie Tomsin" will be one, I know where can be found an- 
other. 

85. The Shooting-Match: The Terms 

(From Indiana magazine of Histo)-y, X; article by Frederick Vogel 

[1912].) 

To pioneer people and early settlers the rifle was per- 
haps the most indispensable weapon. With it they pro- 
cured their meat from the forest, defended their homes 
from wild men and wild animals, preserved their live stock 
from prowling enemies, and saved their cornfields from the 
depredations of squirrels and bears. To be a sure shot was 
a matter of no little importance. Nothing did more to pro- 
mote good markmanship than the shooting-match. But it 
served also a larger purpose. It was a day of recreation 
and amusement when friends gathered for social inter- 
course, to crack jokes, spin yarns, and talk of former ex- 
periences. Often these matches virtually became political 
meetings where candidates made their stump speeches and 
read their certificates.^^ 

They were usually held on Saturday, and every fellow in 
the community who could ' ' split a bullet on his knife blade ' ' 
or "take the rag off the bush" came to display his skill and 
try his luck. The prizes were beeves, hogs, turkeys, veni- 
son, and on some occasions a quantity of meal, or half a 
barrel of whiskey was the reward of skill. Often a live 
turkey or goose itself furnished the target. Each partici- 
pant was charged his proportionate share of the value of 
the thing offered, the charge depending, of course, upon the 
number of participants. Or, if the number of participants 

^^ Certificate, in this sense, means a testimonial to good character. 



272 Readings in Indiana History 

was not equal to the number of chances at an arbitrary 
price, the OAvner of the prize took the remaining chances and 
shot for himself. 

A level place in the woods was selected for a range and 
a roughly outlined rectangle cleared of bushes and twigs. 
Along the sides the spectators formed, standing, stooping, 
or lying in characteristic attitudes. A large tree at one 
end often served as a target. From this trunk were meas- 
ured off in a straight line towards tJie other end of the rect- 
angle two distances for shooting, eighty-five and one-hun- 
dred yard lines. On the former the marksmen who fired off- 
hand^'-* stood; at the one-hundred yard line rests were 
placed by those who preferred to shoot in that fashion. 

Each man prepared for himself a separate target which 
was a poplar shingle having near the center a spot black- 
ened with powder or charcoal as a ground. On this ground 
a piece of white paper, about an inch square with a diamond 
shaped hole in the center, was tacked. The point of inter- 
section of the diagonals of the diamond was the true center 
of the target and from this as a center was described a circle 
with a four-inch radius. Each participant was allowed 
three shots. If any one of them struck beyond the circum- 
ference, even by a hair's breadth, all the other shots, even 
if in the center, did not count. The unhappy marksman lost. 
But if all three struck within the circle they were measured 
by a line from the center of the diamond to the nearest edge 
of the bullet hole ; however, if a ball grazed the center, the 
line was drawn from the center of the diamond to the 
middle of the bullet hole ; then the three lengths were added 
and estimated as one. The man showing the shortest length 
won the prize. This was called line shooting. The most 
scrupulous exactness was always observed in determining 
distances so that there might be no appearance of cheating. 

Each man placed his own target against the tree and 
fired his three shots in succession. On an average it re- 
quired about fifteen minutes for firing. One or two fellows 
stood behind the target tree to announce the result. This 
seems dangerous, yet accidents rarely happen. On one 

-'■' Offhand, i. e., without restiug his gun on a log- or chunk for taking aim. 



Pioneer Society 273 

occasion, however, one man who peeped out to learn the 
canse of delay in the shooting was imhickily killed. On 
another occasion an old man was standing behind the tree, 
awaiting the report. At the flash of the gun he fell dead 
from behind the tree. The tree was hollow — a mere shell 
at the place where he stood — and the bullet had passed 
through it into his body. Practical jokers were always 
present making fun for the company. They '^ hoodooed" 
the crack shot and bewitched the rifle of a prospective prize- 
winner. 

86. The Shooting-Match: The Weapons 

(From A Pioneer History of Indiana, by Col. William M. Cockrum [1907], 

pp. 493-494.) 

The men who in this day have high-priced guns and use 
them only a few weeks in the hunting season can form no 
idea how the old pioneer hunters regarded their guns, keep- 
ing them at all times in perfect order and ready for use at 
any moment. When in the cabins, the guns were hung in 
a crotch over the door or on the side of a joist, with the 
point of a deer's horn for a rack. They did not have the 
percussion caps at that time to fire the powder, but had a 
gun-flint, which was fitted between two plates in the end of 
the hammer of the gun-lock and securely fastened there. 
When the trigger that threw the hammer was touched the 
hammer or flint, in coming down, struck against an upright 
piece of hardened steel which was fastened to the lid of the 
pan which covered the powder and threw the pan open. The 
sparks made by the flint coming in contact with the hard- 
ened steel fell in the powder in the pan, which was con- 
nected with the powder in the gun-barrel through a touch- 
hole, and thus fired the gun. In damp weather the powder 
in the pan would become a little damp and the gun would 
make long fire,^*' as it was termed, so the old hunters be- 
came adepts at holding their guns very steady, always pre- 
pared for the long fire. 

The pioneers learned to shoot with great accuracy with 
these old flint-lock guns. Eight times out of ten they would 

"'-' Make long fire, i. e., take some (iino for the gun to discharge, after the 
trigger was pulled. 

18—1643 



274 Readings in Indiana History 

shoot out a panther's eye at sixty and eighty yards away. 
When powder and lead became more plentiful the hunters 
would practice shooting at a mark, both with a rest, i. e., 
lying down and resting the gun on a log or chunk, or stand- 
ing up and shooting offhand. They made a target by taking 
a board and blackening a spot on it with wet powder ; then 
two marks, which crossed each other in the black spot, were 
made with a knife. Then taking a small piece of paper 
about two inches square, cutting a square out of the center 
about one-half inch in size, they tacked it on the board so 
that the cross would be in the center of the small square. It 
was not considered a very difficult feat for a marksman to 
shoot out the center five times out of ten, eighty-five yards 
offhand or one hundred with the rest. 

87. The IMilitia Muster 

(From Indiana Magasine of History, X, number 3; article by Fbedekick 

VOGEL [1912].) 

The regimental muster was held in October (under the law of 
1828) and the company muster in April. Every member was 
compelled under penalty to attend the company mnsters. The 
noncommissioned officers were not required to attend the regi- 
mental muster. The State was organized like an old Roman mili- 
tary camp. There were two or more divisions, with two brigades 
to each division. Each county usually constituted a regiment and 
each division of the county a company. Everj^ able-bodied man 
was a militiaman. Speciahy drilled bodies of young men organized 
themselves and were called "rifles," such as the "Jay County 
Rifles, ' ' the ' ' Bedford Blues, ' ' and other fancy names. As danger 
from the Indians grew less the militia drill was abandoned. By 
1840 it had lost its vigor and by 1860 had almost disappeared. 
The following selections recall the old customs. 

In the county town was held the general muster, which 
was a meeting of the militia of the county for the purpose 
of instruction and drill. It was held late in the summer 
after the crops had been ''laid by." All persons subject 
to military duty were notified to attend and take their 
places in the companies and regiments to which they were 
assigned. The militiamen were not uniformed, but came 



Pioneer Society 271; 

in their ordinary clothing. Their weapons were of no par- 
ticular pattern — rifles, shotguns, carbines, and muskets — 
and with them they awkwardly went through the manual of 
arms. This military force was often styled the ''corn- 
stalk" militia, because it is said thev carried cornstalks in 
place of guns. This doubtless is untrue, but sometimes 
they wore corntassels in their hats, or caps, which fact may 
have given rise to the sobriquet, 

88. The "Cornstalk Militia" 

(From Sketches of My Oii:n Times, by Senatok David Turpie [1903]. pp. 
31-.'^2. Copyrighted by the Bobbs-Merrill Compauy and used by their 

special permission. ) 

The general muster was a meeting at the county town 
of the militia of the county for the purpose of instruction 
in battalion and brigade drill and other maneuvers. It was 
held in the late summertime, after the crops had been laid 
by. All persons subject to military duty were notified to 
attend and take their places in the companies and regiments 
to which they had been assigned. There was always pres- 
ent a large number of spectators. The militiamen were not 
uniformed, but usually came in their ordinary clothing; 
their weapons were of no particular pattern — rifles, shot- 
guns, yagers,^ ^ carbines,^^ and muskets — with which they 
went through the manual of arms. 

This military force has been sometimes called the corn- 
stalk militia. I never saw any of the men carrying corn- 
stalks for weapons. Some of them wore corntassels in 
their hats or caps ; this may have given rise to that sobri- 
quet. Of course, such a motley array presented, either at 
rest or on the march, an untoward and disorderly appear- 
ance. It brought to mind Falstaff 's review of his recruits : 
''Well, I'll not march through Coventry with them, that's 
flat." 

The crowd of spectators chaffed the soldiery in a 
friendly but humorous style. Some of the older men among 

^^ Yager, the long huntiupr-rifle of the time ; from the (Jcrman, jiiger, a hunts- 
man. 

■''- Carbine, a .short, light rifle often used formerly by cavalry or mounted in- 
fantry. 



276 Readings in Indiana History 

the bystanders, who had seen actual service, joined in the 
sport and criticized the awkward gait and movement of 
those in the ranks. It was evident that this form of mih- 
tary service was fast going to decay. The last time I recol- 
lect seeing these exercises all the companies and regiments 
of the brigade were marched into a large field, where, either 
from some error from the commanding officer or from some 
misunderstanding, the whole body became mingled together 
in such inextricable confusion that we heard the captains 
order the men to take to the fence, which they climbed over, 
formed on the outside and went to headquarters, where they 
disbanded. As no rations w^ere furnished, a very vigorous 
assault was made, after parade drill, upon the booths and 
wagons provided with refreshments. These hungry war- 
riors were, however, quite peaceable ; no violence occurred ; 
each provided his own commissary ,^''^ purchased his meal 
and commenced his journey homeward. 

89. A Muster on the Wea Plains 

(From Recollections of the Early Settlement of the Wahash Valley, by 
Sanford O. Cox [18(30], pp. 35-36.) 

[We will describe the] manner of conducting a militia 
muster, held by Capt. P. H. W., on the south side of the Wea 
prairie in early times. The captain was a stout built, mus- 
cular man, who stood six feet four in his boots, and weighed 
over two hundred pounds. When dressed in his uniform — 
a blue hunting-shirt, fastened w^itli a wide red sash, with 
epaulettes on each shoulder, his large sw^ord fastened by 
his thigh and tall plume waving in the wind — he looked like 
another William Wallace, or Roderick Dlm^^ unsheathing 
his claymore in defense of his country. His company con- 
sisted of about seventy men, who had reluctantly turned out 
to muster, to avoid paying a fine, some with guns, some with 
sticks, and others carrying cornstalks. The captain, who 
had been but recently elected, understood his business better 
than his men supposed he did. He intended to give them 

=•' Commissary, food supplies for a military campaign. 

'■>* William Wallace, a character in Scottish history, mentioned in Porter's 
Scottish Chiefs ; Roderick Dhu is a Scottish clansman in Scott's Lady of the LaT<e. 



Pioneer Society 277 

a thorough drilling and show them that he understood the 
maneuvers of the military art as well as he did farming or 
fox-hunting — the latter of which was one of his favorite 
amusements. 

After forming a hollow square, marching and counter- 
marching, and putting them through several other evolu- 
tions, according to Scott's tactics, he commanded his men 
to ''form a line." They partially complied, but the line 
was crooked. He took his sword and passed it along in 
front of his men, straightening the line. By the time he 
passed from one end of the line to the other, on casting his 
eye back he discovered the line presented a zigzag and un- 
military appearance — some of the men leaning on their 
guns, some on their sticks, a yard in advance of the line, and 
others as far in the rear. The captain's dander rose. He 
threw his cocked hat, feather and all, on the ground, took 
off his red sash and hunting shirt and threw them with his 
sword upon his hat. He then rolled up his sleeves, and 
shouted with the voice of a Stentor :^^ ' ' Gentlemen ! form a 
line, and keep it, or I will thrash the whole company ! ' ' In- 
stantly the whole line w^as as straight as an arrow. The 
captain was satisfied, put on his clothes again, and never 
had any more trouble in drilling the company. 

90. A Social Experiment : Father Rapp at New Harmony 

(From Memorable Days in America, by W. Faux [1823], pp. 265-207.) 

From 1810 to 1840 many novel social experiments were tried 
out all over this country. Most of them were attempts to divide 
up the burdens of work more evenly and give the poor a better 
chance. At least a dozen of these experiments were tried in In- 
diana. The most famous were the two at New Harmony. 

In 1814 the Society of Germans from Economy, Pennsylvania, 
purchased a Inrge tract of land on the "Wabash at New Harmony. 
They were a simple-minded peasant folk, a model of industry and 
good order. After prospering for ten years, Frederick Rapp, the 
founder and high priest, sold out and moved back to Pennsylvania. 
The Rappite company disbanded only a few years ago. 

'■'A character menlionotl in Homer's Iliad noted for his loud voice. 



278 Readings in Indiana History 

Sunday, 21st [November, 1819] — At Harmony till ten 
o'clock, wlien we were told, ''we must then depart, or stay 
until after the morning service," which commences at ten 
o 'clock. At the moment the bells began chiming the people, 
one and all, from every quarter, hurry into their fine church 
like frightened doves to their windows ; the street leading 
to the temple is filled in a moment, and in less than ten min- 
utes all this large congregation, 1,000 men, women, and 
children, all who can walk or ride, are in the church, 
the males entering in at the side, the females at the 
tower, and are separately seated. Then enters the old 
high priest, Mr. Rapp, of about eighty, straight and 
active as his adopted son Frederick, who walks behind 
him. The old man's wife and daughters enter with 
the crowd, from his fine house, which looks as if the people 
who built it for him thought nothing too good for him. The 
people are never seen in idle groups ; all is moving industry ; 
no kind of idling; no time for it. Religious service takes 
place three times every day. They must be in the chains 
of superstition, though Rapp professes to govern them only 
by the Bible, and they certainly seem the perfection of obe- 
dience and morality. People who have left them say that 
Rapp preaches that if they quit the society they will be 
damned, for his way is the only way to Heaven. He does 
much by signs, and by an impressive manner, stretching out 
his arms, which, he says, is the arm of God, and that they 
must obey it ; and that when he dies his spirit will descend 
upon his son Fred. The people appear saturnine [stupid] 
and neither very cleanly nor very dirty. They are dressed 
much alike and look rather shabby, just as working folk in 
general look. None are genteel. The women are inten- 
tionally disfigured and made as ugly as it is possible for art 
to make them, having their hair combed straight up behind 
and before, so that the temples are bared, and a little skull- 
cap, or black crepe bandage [is drawn] across the crown 
and tied under the chin. This forms their only headdress. 

I rode around the town, which will soon be the best and 
first [foremost] in the western country. At present the 



Pioneer Society 279 

dwellings, with the exception of Eapp's, and the stores and 
taverns are all log houses, with a cow-house and other con- 
veniences. One [house] is given to each family, and a fine 
cow and nice garden ; other necessaries are shared in com- 
mon. Their horses, cattle, sheep, are all in one stable; 
herds and flocks are folded every night in comfortable 
sheds, particularly an immensely largO flock of merino 
sheep; and so secured from the wolves. They have a fine 
vineyard in the vale, and on the hills around, which are as 
beautiful as if f orined by art to adorn the town. Not a spot 
but bears the most luxuriant vines, from which they make 
excellent wine. Their orchards, too, are of uncommon size 
and fertility; and in a large pleasure garden is a curious 
labyrinth, out of which none but those who formed it, or are 
well acquainted with it, can find their way. 

Their granary is superb and large, and the barns and 
farm yards are singularly capacious, as well as their cloth 
and other manufactories. It is the wise policy of this peo- 
ple to buy nothing which it is possible for them to make or 
raise, and their industry and ingenuity are irresistible. 
They have much to sell at their own price of almost every- 
thing domestic or foreign. They cannot make shoes half 
as fast as they could sell them. It is not doubted but that 
they are immensely rich, beginning in Pennsylvania with 
only $4,000, and being now worth $100,000. They keep no 
accounts, and all business is done and everything possessed 
in Frederick Eapp's name. They have been in this Har- 
mony for five years only; they bought a huge territory of 
the richest land, which is all paid for, and keep an immense 
quantity in high cultivation, and continue to buy out bor- 
dering settlers, thus ever enlarging their boundaries. An 
American widower, with ten children, joined them some 
time ago, in distress for his children ; all are well off now. 

They work very gently, but constantly. At eleven I left 
Harmony, wishing to see more of this singular community. 
Eapp came hither [to this country] a poor, unlettered 
weaver from Germany. 



280 Readings in Indiana History 

91. Robert Owen and New Harmony 

(From Indiana Universitu Alumni Qiinrtciii/, 1. pp. 151-152; address by 
Judge David Demaree Banta [1S90].) 

Robert Owen was born in Wales in 1771. He received a meager 
schooling and served an apprenticeship in a draper's shop. Later 
he settled in Manchester, England, and became at nineteen the 
successful manager of a cotton mill which employed five hundred 
persons. In 1800, he became the manager and part owner of the 
cotton mills at New Lanark, Scotland, having married the daugh- 
ter of the proprietor, David Dale. 

At New Lanark, Owen became interested in schemes for bet- 
tering the lives of the people who worked in his mills. Many of 
these people lived miserable lives in poor surroundings, where vice 
and disease were common. Owen by personal effort improved 
their houses, and trained them in habits of thrift, order, and clean- 
liness. He was most successful, however, in the education of the 
children, to which he devoted much attention. "For twenty-nine 
years," he wrote, "we did without magistrates or lawyers: without 
a single legal punishment ; without any known poor rates ; without 
intemperance or religious animosities [hatred] ; we reduced the 
hours of labor, educated well all the children from infancy, greatly 
improved the condition of the adults, diminished their daily labor, 
paid interest on capital, and cleared upwards of £300,000 of 
profit." 

Owen taught that people should live together in communi- 
ties or settlements, of about twelve hundred persons each, all living 
in one large building in the form of a square, with common kitchen 
and dining-room. Each family should have its own private 
apartments, however, and the entire care of the children till the 
age of three. After that the children should be brought up by 
the community. The land should be held and tilled in common, 
the other work of the community being divided among the mem- 
bers according to their abilities. 

To try out his plans, Robert Owen, in 1824, came to America 
and bought the lands, buildings, and stock of the Rappites at New 
Harmony, paying $182,000. Here he drew together many persons 
who held his views, many of them people of great talents. His 
community, however, did not prove a success, for the people could 
not all agree in carrying out the plans of the great leader. At 
different times, bands of dissatisfied followers withdrew from New 
Harmony and set up independent communities. In 1828, Robert 



Pioneer Society 281 

Owen left New Harmony and returned to England. We will let 
Judge Ranta tell about some of the great men who dwelt in Robert 
Owen's community. 

We cannot afford to ignore tlie one place in the State 
where was to be seen a great light. It was at New Har- 
mony, in Posey county on the Wabash. There Robert 
Owen, a canny Scotchman, having succeeded by purchase to 
the possessions of the Eappites, had begun his socialistic 
experiment in 1825, tlie very year the State Seminary was 
opened ; and although before the first regular college classes 
were formed in Indiana College the sanguine reformer saw 
that his experiment was doomed to failure, nevertheless 
New Harmony was already radiant with scientific thought 
and work. It is a story that reads like enchantment. The 
Owens — father and three sons, each of the latter to become 
prominently identified with the history of the State. David 
Dale Owen, the eldest, early in 1828 established a geological 
laboratory in New Harmony and ultimately was appointed 
United States Geologist for the Northwest, and served at 
one time or another as State Geologist for three States, In- 
diana, Kentucky, and Arkansas. New Harmony was head- 
quarters for all his geological surveys. Robert Dale Owen, 
literarian and politician, began his career in Indiana in the 
same year as editor of the New Harmony Gazette and in 
1827 published Pocahontas — A Drama, the first distinctive- 
ly literary work by an Indiana author. For over thirty 
years he was closely identified with the political and legisla- 
tive history of the State. He was a member of the commis- 
sion that framed the Indiana code of 1852 — a code remark- 
able for its literary excellence and for the radical changes 
made in the law as to the projDerty rights of married women, 
for both of which he is entitled to credit beyond any other 
man. 

There were others at New Harmony who were already 
(in 1828) renowned or were to become renowned. There 
was Prances Wright, who in that year delivered her first 
public address in New Harmony — the first public address, 
I have no doubt, given in the State by a woman, if not the 
first in the northwest. Thomas Say, the eminent naturalist 



282 Readings in Indiana History 

from Pliiladelpliia, was also tliere busily engaged on his 
afterwards jnstly celebrated work on conchology, and pub- 
lishing from time to time learned papers on entomology, 
which have since been given to the world in two octavo vol- 
umes. William Maclure, geologist and publicist, was there 
also. He was one of the founders of the Philadelphia 
Academy of Sciences, and in after years with a benevolence 
unexampled in Indiana history gave a large fortune to the 
establishing of libraries in every county of the State for the 
benefit of the common people. And Lesseur, the French 
naturalist, wdio had been among the earliest to study the 
strange forms of animal life in New Holland (near Austra- 
lia), was at this very time "working on the description and 
figures of the Wabash fishes" with headquarters at New 
Harmony. And so, too, was Amphlett there, writing the 
text to accompany the publication of Michaux's Sylvia 
Americana. Dr. Richard Owen, who was yet in his teens, 
writes that "in 1828 and subsequently I saw him at this 
work. ' ' 

Others might be mentioned as residents of New Har- 
mony in 1828, who by their scientific investigations added 
to the fame of the place. There was Joseph Neef , a former 
coadjutor of Pestalozzi, and an author of books on educa- 
tion. "He was at the head of the New Harmony Education 
Society." And also Dr. Gerald Troost, a German geolo- 
gist who subsequently made a geological survey of Tennes- 
see, and became president of the Tennessee University. 

What a community of workers to be sure ! Their very 
presence made a university — an unchartered, unendowed 
world's university! How very much darker all the rest of 
the State must have seemed by contrast with that New Har- 
mony light. 

Outside of the work of the Harmony folk, not a book had 
been written and published in the State excepting the laws 
and other things published by public authority, and except- 
ing now and then a political pamphlet. It was to be two 
years before John Finley was to write the "Hoosier's 
Nest," the earliest poem to survive to our times ; and it was 
to be two years before Judge Blackford was to publish the 
first volume of his series of Blackford's Reports. 



CHAPTER XV 
PIUNTING STORIES 

The skill and daring displayed in the preceding period against 
the Indians was exercised during the period from 1816 to 1836 in 
hunting wild animals. There were bears, deer, wolves, wildcats, 
turkeys, and abundance of smaller game. The daredevil hunted 
wildcats and bears, the marksman tried his skill on deer and wild 
turkeys. He prided himself on shooting the heads off of squirrels 
and turkeys. 

Venison hams and bear meat were marketable. Furs and hides 
brought in a great deal of ready money. Above all these, though, 
hunting was deemed a manly sport which all enjoyed according 
to their leisure. It was a proud day for the boy when he could 
take out his father's long rifle and join in the chase. 

92. Adventures with Wild Hogs 

(From Recollections of the Early Settlement of the Wabash Valley, by 
Sanford C. Cox (1860), pp. 40-42.) 

Mr. Cox came from Wayne county, where his father had been 
one of tlie first settlers, by way of Andersontown, Noblesville, and 
Crawfordsville, before any of these towns were settled. After at- 
tending the land sales at Crawfordsville, he moved up intoi the 
Wabash bottoms. He was personally acquainted with the early 
settlers of Tippecanoe and Cass counties. Wea creek, mentioned in 
the second extract below, runs north across the Wea prairie south 
of Lafayette and empties into the Wabash three miles below the 
city of Lafayette. 

On a balmy evening in June, 1835, I strolled from the 
cabin of my brotlier-in-law, where I was stopping for the 
night, to enjoy a moonlight ramble through the verdant val- 
ley that surrounded his humble mansion. The house stood 
about midway between the Wabash river and the Indian 
Creek hills, which lifted their elevated heads several hun- 
dred feet above the bottom lands beneath. With difficulty 
I climbed to the top of one of the peaks of this romantic 
range of hills. 

(283) 



284 Readings in Indiana History 

The scene wliicli surrounded me was sublime and pic- 
turesque beyond description. Before me, in the distance 
lay the Wabash river, rolling its silver current along the 
northern edge of the Wea plain, which was besprinkled with 
garlands of wild flowers of every rich and variegated tint. 
Hawthorn and wild plum bushes, overspread with wild 
honeysuckle and grapevine arbors, grew in clusters along 
the river banks, as if in love with its placid, laughing waters 
that flashed and flamed in the soft moonlight. I stood 
spellbound, gazing upon the lovely prospect and listening 
to the many voices that came floating over the prairie and 
river for miles distant, then reverberating and dying away 
in echoes amidst the surrounding hills. The talk and laugh- 
ter of children, bleating of sheep, barking of dogs, and gab- 
bling of geese, for three or four miles off, came echoing 
around me with a clear, distinct and witching cadence. 

While thus enchanted with the lovely scenery which sur- 
rounded me, and just as I repeated in an audible voice 

If there is an Elysium on earth 
It is this — it is this, 

a fox darted through the thicket, down a dark ravine, bark- 
ing as it went. In a few moments back it came at full speed 
and passed over the hill where I stood. I heard a confused 
crackling of bushes, rattling of stones, and gnashing of 
teeth, with a loud ' ' boo-boo-oh ! ' ' from the ravine the fox 
had just left. Instantly I felt the peril of my position — my 
hair stood on end, as the fearful truth flashed upon my mind 
that the fox had started up a gang of wild hogs. I ran a few 
yards and sprang upon a large log, wliicli at first seemed to 
promise me safety, but which I soon abandoned when I dis- 
covered that I could be approached from the upper side of 
the hill, where the log rose but a few feet from the ground. 
I sprang off and ran for an oak tree that stood on the very 
summit of the hill, gathering from the ground as I ran a 
sugar tree limb as thick as my arm and about eight feet 
long. 

On reaching the tree I found I could not climb it. In- 
stantly I threw my back against the trunk of the tree and 



Hunting Stories 285 

faced my dreadful adversaries, which by this time were 
close upon me. I waved my club and yelled and screamed 
through very fright. They made a furious onslaught — my 
waving bludgeon and violent gestures repelled them; they 
renewed the attack again and again — my whirling, well- 
aimed club beat back the foremost. A panorama of terrors 
passed through my mind. But Harpies, Furies, and the 
Gorgon terrors of the fabled Medusa 's head, encircled with 
hissing snakes, would be desirable compared with the hor- 
rible thought of being devoured alive by a gang of furious 
wild hogs, which would, probably, in a few seconds, rend me 
into a thousand pieces, crush every bone and consume every 
vestige of my mutilated body and every shred of my gar- 
ments, so that none would ever know when or how I left the 
world. A superhuman strength seemed to nerve my arm 
as I applied my bludgeon, and yelled and halloed at the top 
of my voice, which echoed wildly among the surrounding 
hills.* 

During a slight pause in the combat I heard my brotUer- 
in-law's voice, as he ran to the rescue, crying, ''What's the 
matter? What's the matter?" By the time he reached 
the foot of the hill my bristly adversaries, hearing his voice 
in the rear, showed signs of retreating; but one old sow, 
who appeared to be leader of the gang, and had in her sev- 
eral of the devils or evil spirits that entered into her ances- 
tors in the tirde of our Savior, was for keeping up the siege, 
which she actually did, until my brother-in-law got within 
a few yards with his gun. Then she turned her head to one 
side, listened, heard his footfalls as he ascended the hill, 
then raised her head, snorted a retreat, and, with her devil- 
possessed comrades, darted off down the dark ravine, and 
I felt as if an Andes had been lifted from my breast. 

93. Snake-Killing on the Big Wea 

(From Recollections of the Early Settlement of the Wahash Valley, by 
Sanford C. Cox [18G0], pp. 78-80.) 

There was another subtle and dangerous enemy to the 
early inhabitants that legislative enactments could not 
reach, and the most cautious vigilance of the settler could 



286 Readings in Indiana History 

not guard against. The "snake in the grass," in all its 
fearful varieties, was not only common, but exceedingly 
numerous in the country. Besides the rattlesnake, viper, 
adder, and bloodsnake, there were a great many large blue 
and green snakes in the prairie districts, quite saucy and 
pugnacious, that delighted to give chase to newcomers and 
frighten them by their hostile attitudes and convolutions. 
If you would retreat they would chase you like a regular 
black racer ;^'' but if you would turn and give them battle, 
they would immediately retreat with all possible speed, 
glide off into the grass and wait for a "greener customer" 
to pass along. Then suddenly they would again dart out 
at him as if they were boa-constrictors, determined to take 
their prey. These snakes were harmless, but served to put 
people on their g-uard for their more dangerous and venom- 
ous relatives, whose poisonous fangs were greatly dreaded 
by all. 

William Eobinson, Esq., during the early settlement on 
the Little Wea, was bitten by a rattlesnake, and although 
every remedy within reach of his friends was applied, he 
died of the wound. William Key, who lived in Wabash 
township, west of Lafayette, was also bitten by a rattle- 
snake, and was cured by the inmiediate and constant appli- 
cation of the usual antidote^' in such cases. 

Many persons, in different sections of the country, and 
a still larger number of cattle and horses, during every 
summer, suffered from the poisonous fangs of these venom- 
ous reptiles, which infested every portion of the country. 
Early in the spring and late in the fall certain localities 
seemed to teem with these scaly monsters, while other places 
became comparatively free from them. This induced the 
belief that they took up their winter quarters near those 
places where they assembled late in the fall. Strict search 
was instituted, and in the spring of 1827-28 two snake dens 
were discovered in the vicinity of Lafayette — one in a deep 
ravine about half a mile west of Lafayette, where the road 

^° Black racer, a kind of snake common in an early day, which swiftly and 
fearlessly pursued a fleeing person. 

3" The "antidote," in common use at the time, for rattlesnake bite, was 
whiskey, no doubt. 



Hunting Stories 287 

ascends the hill going to Kingston, and the other on the 
north side of the Big Wea creek, near Bear's spring, about 
one-half mile northeast of Foreman's mill. 

As soon as it was certainly known that these dens ex- 
isted, word was sent through the different neighborhoods 
for the citizens to meet (on certain days mentioned in the 
notice) at these dens with mattocks, spades and crowbars. 
If the clefts in the rock were such that the snakes could be 
dug out, the assembled people went to work, and after 
breaking through their subterranean citadel, brought out 
scores of torpid rattlesnakes, "bruised their heads" into 
a pumice, and left them to be devoured by the hogs. Some 
of the fattest were taken home and gallons of oil extracted 
from their carcasses ; and their glittering skins carefully 
saved to cure rheumatism and other chronic disorders, for 
which they were deemed a wonderful specific. If the dig- 
ging process was found to be impracticable, stakes were 
driven into the ground close to each other, three or four feet 
high, enclosing a sufficient area around the hole to admit of 
a large egress of the reptile tribe beneath. One end of a 
long pole was placed on a line of picketing, while the other 
end of this horizontal shaft or lever formed a right angle 
with another short perpendicular shaft, the lower end of 
which was placed immediately over the hole in such a man- 
ner that, upon hoisting the other end of the lever, by pulling 
on a long grapevine attached to the end of the same, this 
sharpened perpendicular shaft was thrust into the hole, 
stopping it as completely as a cob would a jug. 

After thus setting their trap, the snake hunters left with 
the understanding that all hands were to meet at the den 
the next warm, sunny day, after the garter snakes were first 
seen on the sunny side of the hills. At the time appointed 
the inhabitants for many miles around met at the selected 
place. If the weather had been sufficiently warm and balmy 
to draw out a large number of snakes to bask in the sun, the 
grapevine was pulled, the lever sprung, the hole stopped, 
and the snakes belabored with hoop poles and bludgeons 
prepared for the purpose, and thus hundreds were en- 
trapped and killed in one day. 



•88 



Readings in Indiana History 



A few years of snake-killing in this wholesale manner 
comparatively rid the country of these dangerous serpents ; 
and it is only once in a great while that one of these large 
black and yellow rattlesnakes is now to be seen. 

94. Bear-Catching near Pride's Fort 

(From .4 Pioneer History of Indiann. by Col. William M. Cockrum [1907], 

pp. 181-182.) 

Woolsey Pride's Fort near Petersburg had been the 
home of many of the newcomers to that section for some 
time and the provisions had run low. There were vast 




Bear Trap. 

From Thwaites' Early Western Travels. By special permission of Artliur H. Clark 

Company, Ceveland. 

numbers of bears, deer and turkeys in the woods and if it 
were safe to hunt them, a day or so would have replenished 
their larders, so it was decided that three men would go out 
and kill some game.. Paul Tislow, Henry Miley, and Wool- 
sey Pride got everything in readiness and early the next 
morning started, Tislow and Miley taking a bear trap with 
them, as they knew of a place on Pride's creek where there 
was always plenty of bear signs. They intended to set the 
trap and go back the next morning. They were fairly suc- 
cessful, having killed three deer and a half-dozen turkeys. 
Hanging up two deer in the woods, they took one deer and 
the turkeys home with them, after having set their bear trap 
and baited it. 



Hunting Stories 289 

Early the next morning the three men went out again. 
Pride took his horse to bring the deer back on, while Tislow 
and Miley went to the bear trap. When near it they saw 
a large bear run away and a small one in the trap fast by 
its hind foot. They concluded, as it was only a cub weigh- 
ing not more than one hundred pounds, they would take it 
alive with them to the fort to show to the women and chil- 
dren. They were making preparations to tie it when it 
made a great outcry and the old mother bear came rushing 
out after their dog and at them full drive. They had not 
time to get their guns or in any way defend themselves be- 
fore she was on them, knocking Tislow down and attempt- 
ing to tear him to pieces. Miley struck at the bear's head 
with his tomahawk, but hit a glancing blow, not severely 
disabling it, but somewhat addling it, so that it turned 
partly around and off of Tislow, who did not need any invi- 
tation, but in a moment was up, and running to a tree, 
climbed it to a safe distance. This left Miley and the dog 
with the infuriated bear, which kept turning around to get 
hold of the canine. Miley followed its motions by holding 
to its shaggy coat. He made several passes at it with his 
hatchet, but hadn't hurt the animal much. The dog was 
doing all that it could to help him, but had it not been for the 
hold he had on the long hair on the hindquarters of the bear 
it would have torn him to pieces. Having hold of it, he 
would govern himself by the bear's motions. When he had 
time to do anything he halloed to Tislow to come down and 
help him, but Tislow had been there before and was badly 
bitten, his clothing was torn in shreds and he didn't want 
any more of it. 

Wlien Miley was almost worn out two large dogs that 
had followed Pride came rushing into the conflict, thus re- 
leasing him from his perilous position. As soon as Miley 
loosed his hold he ran to a tree and climbed it, leaving the 
dogs and bear to fight it out. The great noise made by the 
men and dogs was heard by Pride and he was seen coming 
at full speed on his horse, but when he got near the battle 
there was such a mixup of dogs and bear that he could not 
shoot without danger of killing a dog. Finally he got a 

19—1643 



290 Readings in Indiana History 

chance and shot the bear through the middle of the shoulder, 
disabling both its forelegs. Then jumping from his horse, 
he finished it with his tomahawk. 

95. Adventui-e with a Panther 

(From A Pioneer History of Indiana, by Col. Wiluam M. Cockrum [1907], 

pp. 464-4G5.) 

In 1806 a family of five persons connected with the Burr 
expedition located in what is now Perry County, Indiana, 
five or six miles north of Flint Island. It consisted of two 
large boys, a grown daughter, the mother and father. 
Through the misrepresentations of Aaron Burr and his 
aides, these people had been induced to leave a good home 
in Virginia and go on the ill-fated expedition with the as- 
surance that great wealth and fame would accrue to them 
for their portion of the gains. These people had come down 
the Ohio in a boat. Wlien they arrived at Louisville they 
learned that Burr and his followers were being hunted by 
the government as traitors to their country. They floated 
on down the Ohio until they came to the mouth of Oil creek 
(Perry County), then ran as far up the creek as they could 
and sunk their boat. Taking their plunder, they went some 
distance farther into the wilderness, where they selected a 
place which suited their fancy and built their cabins with 
a brave determination to start the battle of life over again. 
Joseph Bowers, the head of the family, and his eldest son, 
James, hunted most of the time, killing much game. They 
had located at a point which was some distance from any of 
the traveling traces that the Indians used, and began to feel 
hopeful they would have no trouble with them. 

On one of their hunting excursions the two men had lo- 
cated a patch of hazel brush which was covered over- with 
a thick matting of grapevines loaded with fine large grapes. 
The daughter and the younger brother accompanied the 
two hunters, intending to gather the fruit, and in the even- 
ing when the hunters returned they were to carry it home. 
They had not been long gathering grapes before they saw 
a large animal slipping through the brush, coming toward 
them. The boy, sixteen years old, had armed himself with 
an Indian tomahawk. They tried to slip away in the direc- 



Hunting Stories 291 

tion of their home, but got only a short distance when they 
heard the awful scream of the vicious animal as it came 
bounding after them. Mary Bowers had heard that a pan- 
ther would not attack a human as long as one faced it 
and kept his eyes on the panther 's eyes. This she attempted 
to do, at the same time walking backwards, with the animal 
slowly following her, patting its tail on the ground at each 
step. In her excitement she was not cautious of her steps 
and was tripped by a vine, when the vicious animal bounded 
upon her prostrate body and tore her into pieces with its 
terrible claws. The young boy rushed at the beast with his 
tomahawk and sank the blade into its head, but was unable 
to pull it out of its skull. The panther caught both of his 
arms with his fore claws and in its dying agony tore the flesh 
from his legs with its hind claws. Mr. Bowers and his son 
were a mile away when they heard the scream of the pan- 
ther. They ran as fast as they could to the point where the 
children were left. Here they found Mary dead and the 
arms of Joseph still in the clutches of the dead panther. It 
was many months before he was able to walk again. 

96. Wolf Tales of the Forest 

(From A Pioneer Historij of ImHana, by Col. William M. Cockrum 

[1907], pp. 499-500.) 

The sneaking, snarling wolves were the most despised 
of animals by the old hunters. They were treacherous and 
cowardly and wherever seen they were in such numbers as 
to have a decided advantage. They seldom attacked an ani- 
mal larger than a deer or a calf, but when hungry they 
would attack a cow and kill her. 

A farmer who lived on the headwaters of Pigeon creek, 
in Warrick County, Indiana, once turned his horse out to 
graze at night. Next morning he found the bones of the 
animal only a little way from his stable. 

Often when following a wounded deer the hunter would 
find a dozen or more wolves had cut in on the trail ahead of 
him. They were such a menace to life and property that 
the hunters induced the county commissioners to offer a re- 
ward for each scalp, big or little. This soon thinned them 
out and provided a source of revenue to the hunters. Many 



292 Readings in Indiana History 

of them would take ten or fifteen scalps on a single hunt. 
Early in the forties Jacob W. Hargrove found a wolf 's den 
in the hollow of a large tree in western Pike County near 
the Patoka river. There were six puppies in the den. He 
had watched several days for a chance to kill the old ones, 
but could never see them. He went to the den one evening 
and marked the puppies' ears with his mark. That night 
the old wolves moved them and the next day the two old 
ones were killed on Smith's fork of Pigeon creek, at least 
ten miles, as the bird flies, from their den on the Patoka 
river. They were killed by Jacob Skelton and his son John. 
The two men found the puppies, scalped them and took the 
six scalps to Princeton, where they received six dollars for 
them. They then went to the recorder's office, found the 
marks of Mr. Hargrove recorded, took out one dollar for 
their trouble and sent five dollars to him for the scalps of 
the six puppies which he had marked. 

David Bilderback and Peter Ferguson, who lived in 
Monroe township, Pike County, went to a wolf's den which 
they knew of, intending to kill the puppies and get the re- 
ward then offered for them. Bilderback stationed himself 
beside a tree at the entrance of the den to shoot the old 
wolves should they be attracted by the cries of their pup- 
pies. Ferguson entered the den and began the work of 
killing the puppies and cutting off their ears. The old 
wolves came at him in a terrible fury, having heard the pup- 
pies ' cries, but no shot was heard, and Ferguson barely es- 
caped with his life. He rushed for his gun, which was 
standing against a tree, and saw Bilderback up a sapling 
calling to the wolves, ''Be gone! Be gone!" They drove 
the old wolves away without killing either of them. Fergu- 
son finished scalping the puppies and received the reward. 

97. An Old-Time Grist Mill 

(From Thwaites' Early Western Travels, VIII, p. 270; account by Estwick 
Evans [1819]. Copyright. By permission of Arthur H. Clarlv Com- 
pany, Cleveland.) 

In speaking of mills, I may advert to one which I saw in 
Indiana, and which excited some interest. As I was one 



Hunting Stories 



293 



day passing tlirough a wood, near a small log building, I 
heard a singular noise in the latter, and had the curiosity 
to look in. There was here a gristmill moved by a horse 
and attended by a little boy about nine years of age. The 
horse draws upon a staple fixed in a post; but making no 
progress, he pushes back with his feet the platform upon 




Tiinnel Mill, near Vernon, Indiana, erected about 1830. Operated at first by 
huge overshot wheel, later by turbine. 



which he stands, and which is of a circular form. Through 
the center of this platform there is a post fixed in the 
ground. The walking of the horse sets the machinery in 
motion. The cogs, the wallower, the trunnelhead and the 
stones operated pretty much in the usual way. The Lilli- 
putian miller displayed all the airs and importance so com- 
mon to the managers of such noisy establishments. 



CHAPTER XVI 

RELIGIOUS LIFE OF THE PIONEERS 

There were two bitterly hostile classes in our pioneer society. 
One of these was made up largely of criminals from the east, and 
others, of criminal tendencies, who found the restraints of the law 
disagTceable. The other class was made up of clean, conscientious 
persons who came west for economic reasons, or in some cases to 
escape vicious customs in the old society. These two classes had 
many a furious bout. The first had its headquarters in the tavern, 
the second gathered round the church. Every camp-meeting had 
its gang of rowdies who delighted in hectoring the preachers. On 
the other hand every circuit rider had a chip on his shoulder for 
the tavern bully. They were sworn enemies. The early churches 
had a great work to do aiid it is greatly to their credit and to our 
gain that they did it well. 

98. Building the Meeting House 

(From Making a Neiglihorhood, by Judge David D. Baxta [1881], pp. 17-18.) 

And yet these men were going to build a meeting house. 
How poor in purse and yet how immeasurably rich in faith 
and hope they were ! Here was their home ; here their chil- 
dren, born and unborn, were to grow to manhood and wom- 
anhood and a meeting house was a necessity to them, more 
of a necessity than a mill or a store, and there was but one 
way to get one — huilditi And so the work was begun. Con- 
trary to what so often happens nowadays, there was no con- 
troversy over the location of that meeting house nor over 
the style of architecture to be adopted, nor ovei"' the pro- 
posed cost. 

I doubt if there ever was a meeting house built that oc- 
casioned less bickering among the builders, or for that mat- 
ter brought more joy to them when finished than the old 
Shiloh one. No money was spent for an eligible site. I 
have heard my mother say that my father selected this 
beautiful knoll on which this house stands and yonder dead 

(294) 



Religious Life 



295 



are buried very soon after arriving at liis new home and 
set it apart for the purposes to which it has since been con- 
secrated. Nor was any money spent for materials save the 
little it took to buy a few pounds of nails, and the glass for 
the windows. I do not suppose any subscription paper was 
handed around to raise even that little money. I do not 
know, but I think it probable that deerskins and venison 
saddles were bartered for those few pounds of nails and the 
glass for the windows. The men of Shiloh were skillful 
with the chopping ax, the broad ax, the maul and wedge, the 




McKendrie M. E. Church, near Brookville, Incl. 



frow and whip-saw, and the woods was full of tall and 
straight-boled beeches, maples and ash trees with a fair 
sprinkling of straight-grained white oaks and poplars. All 
the men of Shiloh had to do in order to have a meeting house 
was to go into the forest and cut, hew, split, rive, whip-saw 
and build — and they did it. They paid the price and the 
house was theirs. 

We have no written record of the time when the work 
was begun. Our fathers were more expert with the hand- 
spike than with the pen. ' * It was very warm weather, ' ' says 



296 Readings in Indiana History 

one, and '4t was after the crops were laid by," says anoth- 
er. The last hoeing had been given to the corn patches and 
the little wheat fields had been reaped with the sickle and the 
straw put in the shock and mayhap the grain flailed ont be- 
fore the work was begun. 

Be this as it may, Jesse Young, Sr., Serrill Winchester, 
Gideon Drake, Jacob Banta, Jesse Young, Jr., Joseph 
Young and perhaps others not now remembered felled the 
trees and cut and scored the logs. James W. Young, then 
a lad of sixteen, writes, "I helped line them. " Josiah Drake, 
still younger, says, ''I helped pick the trash off the new 
site." John Young and Thomas W. Titus hewed the logs. 
John Harrell, then a young man and making his home in the 
neighborhood, says, "I put in five or six days at whatever 
canae handiest. ' ' 

<'When the day for raising the house came round a ' * gen- 
eral invitation was sent out, ' ' and volunteer help came from 
all quarters, from Indian creek, Scott's creek, Hopewell and 
Peter Vandiver's neighborhood. That man Avas considered 
a mean one indeed who would refuse muscular aid on such 
an occasion. Serrill Winchester carried up the northeast 
corner of the new house, Joseph Young the northwest,' 
Thomas W. Titus the southwest and John Young the south- 
east. This was the first hewed log house erected in the 
neighborhood and by all odds the most imposing edifice in 
it, and in addition it was the meeting house and so extra 
care was taken in notching down the corners to close-fitting 
joints. 

The clapboard roof was nailed on, which was not a com- 
mon thing done in Shiloh nor anywhere else in central Indi- 
ana in those days. 

Jesse Young, Jr., and Thomas W. Titus ''whip-sawed" 
the planks used for flooring and ceiling, for the doors and 
door and window casing and the communion table. Some 
of that lumber, I am told, has been worked into the floor of 
this house which has taken the place of that log one. John 
Young says, ''the log church was about 25 feet wide by 30 
feet long," but it seems to me its length must have been 



Religious Life 297 

greater by five feet than that. It was located a little to the 
south of the one that has taken its place and like it, its 
greater length was north and south. A double door was 
in the middle of each side and one window flanked each side 
of the doors and two small windows were cut high up in the 
south end and a little to each side of the pulpit. In the north 
end was the fireplace, with its clay hearth, and clay jambs 
well beaten in, the whole surmounted by a mud and stick 
chimney, the handiwork of Serrill Winchester. 

The pulpit was a boxlike structure standing on four 
square posts and made of riven oak boards smoothly shaven 
with a drawing knife. The preacher mounted to his perch 
in that primitive pulpit on steps made by laying upon each 
other in right order logs that had been sawed out to make 
places for doors and windows. The seats were rough whip- 
sawed planks laid on log trestles. The ceiling was made 
by laying loose planks on the joist. In after years this ceil- 
ing was properly done and plain though comfortable seats 
were made. The communion table, a plain deal table made 
of whip-sawed lumber, when set for sacramental purposes, 
extended from the pulpit more than half way down the 
aisle. When used it was covered by a clean white cloth and 
around it all the communicants were seated. When not in 
use it stood at the south end of the church on the outside. 
In a few years its use was discontinued altogether. 

It evidently did not take very long to build that house, 
for I find from the record that on the 30th day of July of 
the year of building, ' ' The congregation of Shiloh met pur- 
suant to notice at the meeting house. ' ' I think it probable 
the work was begun after the middle of the month and no 
doubt the ''notice" was given before the roof was on. 
Doubtless the first meeting was held in a house without a 
chimney, without doors and windows, with unchinked and 
undaubed cracks, without pulpit and with unlaid floor. Be 
this as it may, Monfort preached and Joseph Young was 
elected to the eldership. 



298 Readings in Indiana History 

99. Some Pioneer Preachers 

(John M. Dickey) 

(From Early Preshijierianism in Indiana, by Hanford A. Edson, pp. 65-67.) 

Mr. John M. Dickey engaged to return to the Wash- 
ington congregation, and accordingly, in May, 1815, still a 
licentiate under the care of Muhlenburg Presbytery, he set 
out for his home in the wilderness with his wife and their 
infant daughter. The family and all their earthly goods 
were carried on the backs of two horses. His library con- 
sisted of a Bible, Buck's Theological Dictionary, Bunyan's 
Pilgrim's Progress, and Fisher's Catechism. When the fer- 
riage across the Ohio was paid they had a single shilling 
left. 

Now began the self-denials and struggles of pioneer life. 
It was impossible to expect a comfortable support from the 
feeble congregation. There was little money in the neigh- 
borhood. Taxes were partly paid in raccoon skins, fox 
skins, and ' ' wolf scalps. ' ' People lived on what they could 
raise from the small clearings, by barter, and by hunting. 
Indians still occasioned annoyance and anxiety. Corn was 
pounded in mortars or rubbed on tin graters. Wheat flour 
was seldom seen. Fruit was rare except the wild plums, 
grapes, gooseberries, and pawpaws. Mr. Dickey, there- 
fore, aided the support of his family by farming on a small 
scale, teaching a singing-class, and writing deeds, wills, and 
advertisements. He also surveyed land, and sometimes 
taught school. Much of this work was done gratuitously, 
but it secured the friendship of the people. His average 
salary, including money and gifts, of which he kept a record 
even to the minutest detail for the first sixteen years, was 
eighty dollars. In some way he secured forty acres of land, 
to which he subsequently added eighty acres. Twenty or 
thirty acres he cleared, chiefly by his own labor. With his 
neighbors ' help he built his first house in the woods. It was 
a small log cabin — the floor of slabs split and hewed from 
oak and poplar trees; the windows small, greased paper 
serving instead of glass ; the chimney partly of stone and 
partly of sticks, and daubed with clay. In later years he 



Religious Life 299 

erected a schoolhouse on liis farm, and made sash with his 
own hands for the small glass then in use. He was ' ' handy ' ' 
with tools, and fashioned the woodwork of his plows and 
other farming implements. Often would less skillful 
neighbors work for him in the field, while he ' ' stalked" their 
plows, or made them a harrow or rake. He also had a set 
of shoemaker's tools, mending the shoes of his family and 
often those of his neighbors. He could himself cut out and 
make a neat shoe, but ' ' never liked the work, and avoided it 
if possible. ' ' Music he read with great facility, supplying 
the lack of books with his pen, several of these manuscript 
volumes being carefully kept by his children. He was not 
unaccustomed, on several occasions, to compose both music 
and hymns for the use of the congregation. Under his man- 
agement the winter singing school became a prominent and 
happy feature in the wilderness. 

Preaching every Sabbath, and often during the week, he 
was compelled to do much of his studying while at work on 
the farm, or as he rode on horseback from place to place. 
The family were too poor to afford a lamp or candles, and 
often, after a day of manual labor, Mr. Dickey would gather 
pine knots, having kindled a bright fire, would sit on the 
hearth and write the plan of a sermon. His best opportuni- 
ties for meditation, however, came while riding to his 
preaching stations, through the forests, and along the quiet 
roads. With his Bible, hymn-book, and Confession of Faith 
in the saddlebags, and a Testament and small Concordance 
in his pocket ready for use, he pursued careful investiga- 
tions of important themes. 

His son says: 

' ' On a pony that had learned to avoid the mud by going 
close to the rail fence, I have seen him riding fo*r miles, 
and at every corner lifting his leg and drawing it up on 
the saddle to avoid the rails, too much absorbed in thought 
to observe what the pony or himself was doing. Occasion- 
ally returning to consciousness of things about him, he 
would rein the horse out into the road; but the beast, pre- 
ferring the harder ground, would soon go back to the fence, 



300 Readings in Indiana History 

and creep so close to the sharp corners that the process of 
leghfting would begin again and go steadily on for another 
hour. 

At one time, returning from a preaching-tour to find 
the family entirely out of meal and flour, he remounted his 
horse, went to the mill several miles distant, procured a 
supply, and with the sack on the horse 's back started home- 
ward. But becoming engaged in meditation, the sack fell 
off without his notice. The hungry children, who had made 
several meals of potatoes, saw with dismay that he was 
returning without the supplies, and, calling their mother, 
met him as he rode up to the gate. A single question was 
enough to reveal the state of the case, and wheeling about, 
half-amused and half-ashamed, he hurried back to find the 
sack at the roadside. He often said that to think closely 
he must be on his horse. There was no subject engaging 
the attention of the world which he did not ponder as thor- 
oughly as opportunities allowed. He was well informed on 
questions of public policj^, and sometimes addressed com- 
munications to those in poAver, always urging that "right- 
eousness exalteth a nation." These communications were 
kindly received and often elicited respectful replies. 

A Brother of the Baptist "Persuasion" 

(From Sketches of My Oicn Times, by David Tlrpie [1903], pp. 9-12. Copy- 
right 1903. Used by special permission of the publishers, The 
Bobbs-Merrill Company.) 

There were several double log cabins in our neighbor- 
hood. One of these was the home of a Kentuckian, a man 
of some means, who had sold his possessions in his native 
state, bought a large tract of land in our country, and had 
been living on it some years. His double cabin was built 
of hewn timber, the yard around it was filled with choice 
shrubs and fruit trees brought from the old "settlements 
over the river," by which words he always described the 
country of his former home. The sides and ends of his 
house were bordered all round by a broad strip of sand 
and gravel. This kept the house dry and afforded no nest- 
ing for the numerous insects, winged and wingless, which 



Religious Life 301 

in warm weather were tronblesome. The gates and fences 
of the house-lot were of plank, its walks were well laid 
out and covered with gravel. He lived near Sugar Creek, 
sometimes called Big Sugar, and made good use of its 
long-accumulated deposits. The space between the two 
cabins in such a house was known as the entry, and was 
wide and roomy. The entry in this house was roofed with 
clapboards, and its floor was of clay and gravel beaten 
down hard and smooth. It was open at both ends ; you 
could stand or sit in it, in the hottest day of siunmer, and 
yet feel a cool and refreshing draft of air in its shade. 

The owner of this mansion was a typical pioneer, stal- 
wart, and wise, full of activity and enterprise, fond of his 
farm and well skilled in its management. He was withal a 
religious man, strictly such in precept and practice, and, as 
he phrased it, of the Baptist persuasion. When the Bap- 
tist minister came, as he did once a month, to preach in the 
neighborhood, the meeting was held at this house, and the 
double log cabin was a very good place for that purpose. 
There were at that time no church buildings in the country 
and we at that time seldom went to town on Sunday. The 
crowd assembled at the house named at the time appointed, 
of which notice had been given. The preacher took his 
place in the middle of the entry ; before him was set a small 
stand on which to lay his Bible and hymn-book. The women 
were seated in the rooms on one side of the entry, the win- 
dows and doors being open, and the men in the same way 
on the other side. Separate seating of the sexes at church 
was rigidly observed at the time, and indeed for many years 
afterwards, both in town and country. All the children sat 
together in the entry just in front of the minister, but one 
or two of the elders sat with them as monitors. 

Service began by reading a chapter, followed by prayer! 
The hymn was then lined out, and a person somewhat ac- 
quainted with music led in the singing; the audience joined 
in with vigor and evident satisfaction. The parts, bass and 
treble, were carried in the exercise, for the winter singing 
school was already an established institution, and the sing- 
ing-master a well known public character. Then came the 



302 Readings in Indiana History- 

reading of the text and the sermon, or, as it was more com- 
monly called, the discourse, which lasted always an hour, 
sometimes longer. 

During the whole service there was the utmost 
decorum; no chatting either aloud or in undertone; even 
whispering was regarded such a breach of good manners 
that it seldom was indulged in. 

The discourse was listened to with special interest. The 
service was plain ; the place where it was held abounded in 
flowers, but there was no bouquet on the preacher's stand, 
none on his person, nor were any flowers worn by the hear- 
ers. This extreme simplicity in religious exercise was not 
due to any lack of respect or regard; it was rather due to 
an excess of reverence for the sacred character of the time 
and place — an over-anxiety to avoid anything which might 
even appear to be out of harmony with the propriety of the 
occasion. Reverence seemed to be a natural trait of the 
hardy backwoodsmen — it fitted them like a garment and was 
deeply imprinted upon the hearts and minds of their chil- 
dren. 

At the close of the sermon another hymn was sung, fol- 
lowed by a brief prayer and benediction. As soon as meet- 
ing broke, to use the vernacular of those days, the people 
crowded round the minister to exchange greetings; many 
also shook hands with their host, thanking him for the op- 
portunity of hearing the Word, and hoping that the family 
had not been too much put out by the presence of such a 
large congregation. The host modestly disclaimed the 
thanl^s, said all were more than welcome, and heartily in- 
vited them to come again. As the people went homeward 
they talked by the way about the meeting, the singing, but 
chiefly about the discourse, which usually became the theme 
of conversation in the neighborhood for many days after- 
ward. 

(Elijah Goodwin) 

(From the TAfe of Elijah Goodwin, by Elijah Goodwin [1880], pp. 90-92.) 

There was no thought among our people at this time of 
supporting a preacher for his services. It was expected 
that every preacher would support himself and family, and 



Religious Life 303 

preacli all he could, simply as a Christian duty. It was in 
view of this arrangement that I built my house. I could 
see nothing before me but hard work on the farm through 
the week, and Sunday preach without any remuneration, 
besides attending two and three day meetings frequently. 
By the time my crop was laid by, I was very much wearied 
with my mental and physical labor, and I told some of the 
brethren that I must preach less, or work less ; that I had 
been travelling from ten to twenty miles on Sunday and 
preaching two or three times, holding prayer-meetings of 
nights during the week, and then working in the field from 
4:30 o'clock A. M. to 7:30 P. M., which was more than any 
one man could long endure. 

When my crop was laid by, I went to work on my house. 
I hewed my puncheons for the floor, put them down and 
chinked and daubed the cracks, built my ''cat-and-clay" 
chimney, and moved into it on the 1st of September, 1829, 
and was ready for gathering my crop by the time it was 
ready. And at the approach of winter, the brethren per- 
suaded me to take a school for the winter, which I did, and 
I succeeded so well that the neighborhood built a school- 
house for me, and I continued to teach during the next 
spring and summer. During this time I had, by special 
invitation, made arrangements for preaching once a month 
at the "Yankee Settlement," four miles from Mt. Vernon, 
the county seat of Posey county, Indiana, and eighteen 
miles from home. I have preached there in the winter 
season, on Sunday and Sunday nights, slept a few hours, 
then risen at 1 A. M., got a bite to eat and started for home 
eighteen miles, and be in my school in time. In those 
days teaching school was not simply a day of six hours 
but we put in a full day, from 7 o'clock A. M. to 6 P. M., 
in the summer, and in the winter from daylight till dark, 
giving the children just time enough after daylight to reach 
the school-house, and we let them out just in time to reach 
home before dark. 

The people in this community were generally poor, or 
at least they did not handle much money; so I had to take 
my pay for teaching in anything they had to spare. On 



304 Readings in Indiana History 

Saturday before the third Sunday in May, 1830, I was 
chosen pastor of the church at Union; so I held a two-days' 
meeting every month with this church. According to the 
order which we had adopted in this church, we had a 
monthly church-meeting on Saturday, preaching Saturday 
at 11 o'clock A. M., and at night, and on Sunday at the same 
hours. 

The duty of the pastor was to fill these appointments, 
or have it done, and preside at the business meetings. He 
was also expected to visit the sick and look after delinquent 
members ; all of which had to be done without any pecuniary 
consideration. Nothing was promised me, and, of course, 
I was not disappointed when T received nothing. 

100. Quarterly-Meeting Penitence 

(From Recollections of the Early Settlement of the Wabash Valley, by 
Sanford O. Cox [1860], pp. 80-82.) 

The first quarterly meeting of the Methodist Episcopal 
church held in Lafayette, met in a log cabin, long afterward 
used by Eli Huntsinger as a wheelwright shop, which stood 
on the corner of Mississippi and Ferry streets, within a 
few yards of the chapel of the western charge of the Metho- 
dist church. 

James Armstrong was a circuit rider, and John Strange 
presiding elder. The district then embraced western In- 
diana, which extended from the Ohio river northward to the 
lakes, and the circuit was scarcely less extensive. 

These able and beloved ministers of the gospel, with a 
self-sacrificing devotion to the spiritual interests of their 
flocks, made it a point never to fail to meet their congre- 
gations, however small in point of numbers, when it was 
possible to prevent [avoid] it. The circuit rider had pub- 
lished the time and place of the quarterly meeting for more 
than a month, and many of the Methodists and other de- 
nominations scattered through the country, had assembled 
with the few church members who resided in Lafayette, to 
worship the Almighty, and cultivate and strengthen the 
bonds of society. Besides public preaching, and the trans- 
action of the business of the quarterly conference, a Love 



Religious Life 301; 

Feast was held, according to the usages of society, and the 
Lord's Supper was administered in a solemn and appro- 
priate manner. 

Armstrong, who was an eloquent and popular preacher, 
beloved by all who knew him, addressed the meeting with 
happy effect ; and Strange, a man with surpassing personal 
beauty, piety and eloquence, conducted the service of the 
Eucharist.^^ 

While Strange was addressing the communicants bowed 
around the altar, and in the most soothing and encouraging 
language pointed them to the Christ as the ''Lamb of God 
that taketh away the sins of the world, ' ' a group of giddy, 
thoughtless young men sat near the door, whose looks and 
actions denoted a spirit of levity wholly incompatible with 
the solemn ceremonies transpiring before them. Strange 
for a while seemed to take no notice of their whispering 
and throwing hazelnut hulls over the floor, but continued 
to address the communicants in the most gentle and touch- 
ing manner ; and then he started up suddenly, as if waking 
from a reverie, and said: ''Did I say that Christ was the 
lamb of God? — He is to the humble, penitent believer; but 
to you," (pointing back with his long, bony finger toward 
the young men near the door,) "to you, sinner, arouse Him, 
and He is the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, and by the slight- 
est exertion of His omnific finger, could dash you deeper 
into damnation than a sunbeam could fly in a million of 
ages!" The effect was electrical. The transition from the 
gentle and pathetic to the stern and terrible, was so sudden 
and unexpected, that one of the young men said he felt his 
hair instantly raise on end, and that he was going with 
the velocity of thought toward the doleful regions so elo- 
quently and fearfully alluded to in this impromptu and 
brilliant flash of rhetoric, which equalled the most sublime 
flights of Bridaine, Bascom, or Simpson. 

Armstrong, Strange, and the most of those who were 
present at that quarterly meeting, have passed to that 
"bourne from whence no traveler returns." A few only 
of those who partook of the Eucharist on that occasion lin- 

2* Eucharist, comm'iinion, Lord's Supper. 
20—1643 



3o6 Readings in Indiana History 

ger among us. The young gentleman who was the leader 
of the disturbers near the door that evening, and felt he 
was flying through space to pandemonium swifter than 
Milton's ''Archangel Ruined" ever did, still lives in La- 
fayette, and is now a worthy and exemplary member of the 
church. When I see his gray head, as he moves around 
town, with his hair standing a la Jackson,^^ I secretly won- 
der whether it is natural for his hair to resemble the ' ' fret- 
ful porcupine," or whether it was not caused by the electric 
shock of Strange 's potent eloquence. 

101. An Old- Time Camp Meeting 

(From Thwaites' Early Western Travels, IX, pp. 257-263; account by 

James Flint.) 

I lately returned from visiting the camp meeting of 
Wesleyan Methodists, where I remained about twenty-four 
hours. On approaching the scene of action, the number of 
horses tied to the fences and trees, and the traveling 
wagons standing in the environs, convinced me of the 
great magnitude of the assemblage. Immediately round 
the meeting a considerable number of tents was irregularly 
disposed. Some of them were log cabins that seemed to 
have served several campaigns, but most of them were con- 
structed of poles, covered over with coarse tow cloth. 

These tents are for the accommodation of the people 
who attend the worship for several days, or for a week 
together. I had no sooner got a sight of the area within, 
than I was struck with surprise, my feet were for a moment 
involuntarily arrested while I gazed on a preacher vocifer- 
ating from a high rostrum, raised between two trees, and 
an agitated crowd immediately before him, that were mak- 
ing a loud noise, and the most singular gesticulations which 
can be imagined. On advancing a few paces, I discovered 
that the turmoil was chiefly confined within a small inclo- 
sure of about thirty feet square, in front of the orator, 
and that the ground occupied by the congregation was laid 
with felled trees for seats. A rail fence divided it into two 
parts, one for females, and the other for males. It was my 

" ^ la Jackson, after the fashion of Andrew Jackson, who wore his hair combed 
almost upright In front. 



Religious Life 307 

misfortune to enter by the wrong side, and I was politely 
informed of my mistake by Colonel P — — , of my acquaint- 
ance, who, it appeared, had undertaken the duty of keeping 
the males apart from the females. The inclosure already 
mentioned was for the reception of those who undergo reli- 
gious awakenings, and was filled b}^ both sexes, who were 
exercising violently, shouting, screaming, clapping of 
hands, leaping, jerking, falling and swooning. The 
preacher could not be distinctly heard, great as his exertions 
were; certainly had it not been for his elevated position, 
his voice would have been entirelv blended with the clamors 
below. I took my stand close by the fence, for the purpose 
of noting down exclamations uttered by the exercised, but 
found myself unable to pick up anything like a distinct 
IDaragrajDh. Borrowing an idea from the Greek mythology, 
to have a distinct perception of sounds, poured from such 
a multitude of bellowing mouths, would require the ear of 
Jove. I had to content myself with such vociferations as 
''glory, glory, power, Jesus Christ," with groans and woes 
unutterable. 

In the afternoon a short cessation was allowed for din- 
ner, and those deeply affected were removed to tents and 
laid on the ground. This new arrangement made a strik- 
ing change in the camp, the bustle being removed from the 
center and distributed along the outskirts of the preaching 
ground. Separate tents, in which one or more persons 
were laid, were surrounded by females who sung melodi- 
ously. It is truly delightful to hear these sweet singing 
people. Some of their tunes, it is true, did not convey, 
through my prejudiced ears, the solemn impressions that 
become religious worship, for I recognized several of the 
airs associated with the sentimental songs of my native 
land. In one instance a tent was dismantled of its tow 
cloth covering, which discovered a female almost motion- 
less. After a choir of girls around her had sung for a 
few minutes, two men stood over her, and simultaneously 
joined in prayer. One of them, gifted with a loud and clear 
voice, drowned the other totally, and actually prayed him 
down. 



3o8 Readings in Indiana History 

After dinner another orator took his place. The inclo- 
sure was again filled with the penitent, or with others wish- 
ing" to become so, and a vast congregation arranged them- 
selves on their seats in the rear. A most pathetic prayer 
was poured forth, and a profound silence reigned over all 
the camp, except the fenced inclosure, from whence a low 
hollow murmuring sound issued. Now and then, "Amen" 
was articulated in a pitiful and indistinct tone of voice. 
You have seen a menagerie of wild animals on a journey, 
and have perhaps heard the king of beasts and other power- 
ful quadrupeds, excited to grumbling by the jolting of the 
wagon. Probably you will call this a rude simile; but it 
is the most accurate that I can think of. 

Sermon commenced. The preacher announced his de- 
termination of discontinuing his labours in this part of the 
world, and leaving his dear brethren for ever. He ad- 
dressed the old men present, telling them that they and he 
must soon be removed from this mortal state of existence, 
and that the melancholy reflection arose in his mind, — 
"Wliat will become of the church when we are dead and 
gone!" A loud response of groaning and howling was 
sounded by the aged in the inclosure, and throughout the 
congregation. He next noticed that he saw a multitude of 
young men before him, and, addressing himself to them, 
said, "I trust in God, that many of you will be now con- 
verted, and will become the preachers and the pious Chris- 
tians of after days." The clamour now thickened, for 
young and old shouted together. Turning his eyes toward 
the female side of the fence, he continued, "And you, my 
dear sisters." What he had further to say to the future 
"mothers of the church," could not be heard, for the burst 
of acclamation, on their part, completely prevented his 
voice from being heard, on which account he withdrew, and 
a tune was struck up and sung with grand enthusiasm. The 
worship now proceeded with a new energy; the prompter 
in the pulpit had succeeded in giving it an impulse, and 
the music was sufficient to preserve emotion. The inclo- 
sure was so much crowded that its inmates had not the 
liberty of lateral motion, but were literally hobbling en 



Religious Life 309 

masse. My attention was particularly directed to a girl 
of about twelve years of age, who while standing could not 
be seen over her taller neighbors ; but at every leap she was 
conspicuous above them. The velocity of every plunge 
made her long loose hair flirt up as if a handkerchief were 
held by one of its corners and twitched violently. Another 
female, who had arrived at womanhood, was so much over- 
come that she was held up to the breeze by two persons 
who went to her relief. I never saw such exhaustion. The 
vertebral column was completely pliant, her body, her 
neck, and her extended arms, bent in every direction suc- 
cessively. It would be impossible to describe the diversity 
of cases ; they were not now confined within the fence, but 
were numerous among the people without. Only a small 
proportion of them could fall w^ithin the observation of any 
one bystander. The scene was to me equally novel and 
curious. 

About dusk I retired several hundred yards into the 
woods to enjoy the distant effect of the meeting. Female 
voices were mournfully predominant, and my imagination 
figured to me a multitude of mothers, widows, and sisters, 
giving the first vent to their grief, in bewailing the loss of 
a male population by war, shipAvreck, or some other great 
catastrophe. 

It had been thought proper to place sentinels without 
the camp. Females were not allowed to pass out into the 
woods after dark. Spirituous liquors were not permitted 
to be sold in the neighborhood. 

Large fires of timber were kindled, which cast a new 
lustre on every object. The white tents gleamed in the 
glare. Over them the dusky woods formed a most romantic 
gloom, only the tall trunks of the front rank were distinctly 
visible, and these seemed so many members of a lofty 
colonnade. The illuminated camp lay on a declivity, and 
exposed a scene that suggested to my mind the moonlight 
gambols of beings known to us only through the fictions 
of credulous ages. The greatest turmoil prevailed within 
the fence, where the inmates were leaping and hobbling to- 
gether with upward looks and extended arms. 



3IO Readings in Indiana History 

Around this busy mass, the crowd formed a thicker ring 
than the famous Macedonian phalanx; and among them, a 
mixture of the exercised were interspersed. Most faces 
were turned inward to gaze on the grand exhibition, the 
rear ranks on tiptoe, to see over those in front of them, 
and not a few mounted on the log-seats, to have a more 
commanding view of the show. People were constantly 
passing out and into the ring in brisk motion, so that the 
white drapery of the females, and the darker apparel of 
the men were already alternately vanishing and reappear- 
ing in the most elegant confusion. The sublimity of the 
music served to give an enchanting effect to the whole. 
My mind involuntarily reverted to the leading feature of 
the tale of "Alloway Kirk:" 

Warlocks and witches in a dance; 

where Tam O'Shanter 

stood like one bewitch' d, 
And thought his very een enriched. 

Late in the evening a man detached himself from the 
crowd, walking rapidly backward and forward, and crying 
aloud. His vociferations were of this kind : "I have been 
a great sinner, and was on the way to the damned; but am 
converted now, thank God^ — gloiT) glory!" He turned 
round on his heel, occasionally, giving a loud whoop. A 
gentleman with whom I am well acquainted, told me that 
he had a conversation with a female who had just recovered 
from the debility of the day. She could give no other 
account of her sensations than that she felt so good, that 
she could press her very enemy to her bosom. 

At half past two A. M. I got into a tent, stretched myself 
on the ground, and was soon lulled asleep by the music. 
About five I was awakened by the unceasing melody. At 
seven, preaching was resumed ; and a lawyer residing in the 
neighborhood gave a sermon of a legal character. 

At nine the meeting adjourned to breakfast. A multi- 
tude of small fires being previously struck up, an extensive 
cooking process commenced, and the smell of bacon tainted 



Religious Life 311 

the air. I took this opportunity of reconnoitering the 
evacuated field. The Uttle inclosure, so often mentioned, 
is by the religious called the Altar, and some scoffers are 
wicked enough to call it the Pen, from its similarity to the 
structures in which hogs are confined. 

103. Life at a Camp Meeting 

(From Sketcfies of My Oivn Times, by Senator David Ttjrpie [1903]. Copy- 
right 1903. Used by special permission of the publishers, The 
Bobbs-Merrill Company.) 

Our townspeople frequently attended camp meeting. 
We went as visitors, not as campers ; the latter stayed and 
lived upon the camp ground during the time the meeting 
was in progress, which lasted always a week, sometimes 
longer. The camp ground was made near a creek or river 
and in the shadiest woods. Attendance at these meetings 
was large; the people came on horseback and in covered 
wagons, sometimes from a distance of forty or fifty miles. 
Some of them brought tents; many, however, lodged and 
slept in their wagons. They usually carried with them 
cooked provisions, but there were always coffee-fires built 
along the outer edge of the ground for those who wished to 
make use of them. Horses and wagons were corralled 
roughly in the shape of a horseshoe, at the open end of 
which was the preacher's stand, and in front of it the 
mourners' seat or bench. The ground beyond this to the 
line of wagons was filled with seats, temporarily made with 
planks and logs, except a vacant space around the stand. 
The camp at night was lighted by lanterns and blazing bark 
or twigs, placed upon small earth-covered platforms, and 
supported by wooden tripods of proper height; these fires 
were replenished from time to time by the watchers. 

The leading event of a day in camp was the eleven 
'clock sermon, usually prepared for the occasion. After- 
noon service was less formal ; it commenced with the hand- 
shake. All standing, you turned to the right and then to 
the left, shaking hands with whosoever stood next you. 
Then the testimonies were called for ; any one in the audi- 
ence rose and repeated some short verse or clause from the 



312 Readings in Indiana History 

Bible; forty or fifty testimonies would thus be delivered 
within half an hour. Comments were made briefly upon 
one or more of these texts by the ministers in the stand 
until the audience was dismissed for supper. 

In the evening there was a short discourse, followed by 
prayers and fervid exhortations. The mourners or seek- 
ers gathered around the preachers' stand, the elder mem- 
bers of the church mingling with them. Their utterances 
were loud, irregular and much broken; there were devout 
ejaculations, singing and shouting. Those that took part 
in these exercises became greatly excited, forgetful of 
others, of the audience and its presence. Women were fre- 
quent participants. I have known several staid, modest 
and matronly housekeepers, who were spoken of as pretty 
good shouters ; not in any sort or derision, but with respect- 
ful deference, from the order and decorum which they man- 
ifested in this part of their devotions. The people of those 
days in simple faith accredited these things as gifts or 
visitations of the Holy Spirit, bestowed upon those who led 
a pure and blameless life — upon those always and none 
besides. Often camp meetings were held year after year 
in the same place, some site favored by abundance of shade 
and water. They took place in the latter part of the season, 
in August or September, when the roads were at their best 
and the weather fair, in our part of the state mainly under 
the auspices of two communions, the Methodists and the 
New Lights. 

The most prominent leader in these religious movements 
among the New Lights was a Kentuckian, an old man of 
three score years, but of robust figure and strong muscular 
development. He was born and reared in the mountain re- 
gion of his native State. His youth was wild and f roward ; 
he had been a noted boxer and fighter. In a famous battle, 
wherein he had been victor against one of the mountain 
bullies, he had lost an eye; but the one he had served him 
well ; he read without glasses the fine print of the little Tes- 
tament and hymn-book which he used in his ministrations. 

He owned a good farm, well stocked and tilled. He said 
he was a farmer by trade, a preacher by calling. A few 



Religious Life 313 

rude fellows of the baser sort had attempted at first to dis- 
turb his meetings ; some of these had become zealous con- 
verts ; the rest were careful not to incur his displeasure. 
He had a very striking way of enforcing order against tres- 
passers in the congregation. Strange liberties he took with 
grammar and pronunciation in his discourses, yet none of 
his fellow-laborers impressed an audience as he did. He 
had the moving accent of conviction, speaking, in tones of 
deep contrition, of the sins of his youth; the hearers fol- 
lowed him both in his sorrow and repentance. Troops of 
friends and brethren gathered around him wherever he so- 
journed; they called him father, out of pure natural affec- 
tion. He was always plainly but neatly dressed in the 
homespun garb of the country. Belonging to an ancient 
and honorable order, yet he wore no insignia or regalia; 
he had been for years a member of the Society of Turners — 
those mentioned by the prophet; ''They that turn, that turn 
many to righteousness shall shine as the stars forever and 
ever. ' ' 

These camp meetings usually closed at midnight of the 
last day with the singing of some old familiar hymn, in 
which the whole congregation joined. Inured by the prac- 
tice of the week before, they kept time and tune in unison ; 
the volume of sound was vast and imposing; the echo re- 
bounding from the neighboring woods, heard in the dark- 
ness at the close of each verse, impressed one almost with 
the conviction that the voices were not all of this world, — 
that the "choir invisible" seemed to take part in the re- 
sponses. 

Next morning they took breakfast on the camp-ground, 
the wagons were packed, good-byes said, and they started 
on the journey for their homes. There was nothing of 
hurry or confusion in their departure, no car time to make, 
no telegrams to excite or disturb, nothing to distract atten- 
tion from the memories of that season of worship whose 
closing hours they had witnessed. 



314 Readings in Indiana History 

103. Preachers on the Circuit 

(From The Neio Purchase, by Baynard R. Hall [1855], pp. 290-297.) 

J:*^or The New Purchase see introduction to selection 78. Mr. 
Hall and his companion were returning from a camp meeting at 
Vincennes, in 1825, when the incidents recounted below took place. 

''Oh! hullow! stop, won't you?" 

''What's the matter?" 

' ' My hat 's gone. ' ' 

' ' There it is, dangling on that branch — look up — higher !- 
higher yet ! ' ' 

"Oh! yes — I see: — lucky the hat wasn't tied under a 
fellow's chin, hey? — how the thing jerked!" 

"Ouch! — what a scratch! — just get out your knife and 
cut this green-briar." 

"I've cut it — go on: — look out, you'll lose your right 
leggin. ' ' 

"Whi-i-rr!— what's that?" 

"A pheasant!" 

' ' H-i-i-ss !— what 's that ? ' ' 

"A snake!" 

"Haw! haw! haw! — if your trousers ain't torn the pret- 
tiest!" 

"Don't taste them ! — they ain't grapes ! — they are poison 
berries!" 

"Look — quick! — what an enormous lizard!" 

And then such knocks on the head! Did I ever think 
heads, before the aid of phrenology, could bear such 
whacks ! 

In about three hours from the starting at the gully, we 
somehow or other stood on the summit of a bold blutf, and 
beheld the river coolly and beautifully flowing beneath our 
feet away below! Here we halted, first to repair apparel, 
wipe off perspiration, and pick out briars and thorns from 
the hands and other denuded parts; and, secondly, to de- 
termine the next movement, when — hark! the sound of an 
axe ! yes ! and hark ! — of human voices ! 

Between us and the sounds, evidently not more than two 
hundred yards up the river, interposed a dense and thorny 



Religious Life 315 

rampart ; but with coats fresh buttoned to our throats, hats 
half-way over the face, and leggins rebound above the knee 
and at the ankle, we, in the saddles, and retired within 
ourselves like snails, the outer man being thus contracted 
into the smallest possible dimension, and with heads so 
inclined as to render following the nose alike impossible 
and useless, we charged with the vengeance of living batter- 
ing rams against and into the matted wall of sharp and 
sour vegetables ; and onward, onward, went we thus, till all 
at once, the impediment ceasing, we burst and tumbled 
through into an open circular clearing of about fifty yards ' 
diameter ! 

In one part was a rude shantee or temporary lodge of 
poles and bark, a la Indian, having in front, as cover to a 
doorway, a suspended blanket, perhaps to keep out mos- 
quitoes ; for I neither saw nor imagined any other use. On 
one side of the area, were large heaps of hoop-poles, on 
another, of barrel-staves ; while in several places stood gaz- 
ing at us three squatter-like personages, and evidently not 
gratified at our unceremonious visit. The nature of their 
employment was manifest — the preparation of some west- 
ern "notions and ideas" for the Orleans market. 

"Well, what of that I" 

Nothing; it was very correct, except in one small par- 
ticular; this snug little swamp and thicket, some thirty, 
miles by two in extent, and full of choice timber, happened 
to belong to our Great Father's elder brother, the vener- 
able dear good old Uncle Sam! And these reprobate 
nephews, our cousins, were simply busy in taking more than 
their share of the common heritage — in short, they were 
poaching and stealing ! Now, kind reader, for the last three 
hours, we had passed through a considerable scrape; nay, 
as we had shrunk up, it may be called a narrow scrape ; but 
on comprehending the present affair, it seemed not improb- 
able that we had only come out of the scrape literal, into 
the scrape metaphorical. 

"How so?" Why you see, a large penalty was in- 
curred for cutting down and stealing public timber ; and the 



3i6 Readings in Indiana History 

informer got a handsome share of the fine as reward; so\ 
that our industrious kinsmen taking- us, at first, for spies and 
informers, not only looked, but talked quite growl-ly; and 
we both felt a little nervous at sight of the rifles and scalp- 
ing knives in the shantee ! Here is a first-rate temptation 
to make a thrilling story ; but I must not forget the dignity 
of history — although Uncle John and I both thrilled at the 
time without any story — and so I proceed to say, that we 
soon satisfied our free traders who we were, and that they 
condescended not only to laugh, but to sneer at us, and then 
pointed to the nice little wagon that one of them had driven 
yesterday from near Bazorville, with their supplies for the 
current week! And that was the identical rut-making 
machine that, so contrary to everybody's wishes, had coaxed 
us into the thicket ! 

We were then taught to return on its trace, by a kind 
of opening through the maze ; and received ample directions 
where and how to cross the ravine. We accordingly hast- 
ened away; but we never felt perfectly easy or ventured 
to laugh honestly, till full two hundred yards beyond the 
longest rifle shot, which might very accidentally take our 
direction, and, may be, hit us. After having thus lost a 
wagon in a thicket, I felt inclined to lielieve in the difficulty 
of finding a needle in a hay-stack. But we came, finally, 
to a deserted cabin ; and there, after a keen look, discovered 
a little path laid down for us in the late verbal chart. 

Revived we now cantered on, and not long after reached 
our breakfast-house, just as the sun was going down — hav- 
ing in the day's navigation with all our tackings made 
precisely seven miles, by the short cut, in the homeward 
direction. Since Monday night, we had eaten nothing, and 
were naturally ready now for three meals in one; and yet 
we were destined to wait a little longer, and condense into 
one, four repasts — like ancient Persians when hunting. 

For, either not liking our appearance, or vexed at our 
not having come earlier to breakfast, we were here most 
pertinaciously refused any entertainment whatever, and 
even peremptorily ordered away; and were, indeed, com- 



Religious Life 317 

pelled to put off for the nearest house, some eight miles 
farther at the ferry! 

In about two hours, we having again lost our way, and 
it being very dark, my horse, now in the lead, suddenly 
halted; when dismounting, I tried first with my feet, and 
then my hands, and quickly had by these new senses a feel- 
ing sense of our situation, viz., that we stood at the diverg- 
ing point of two paths running from one another at nearly a 
right angle ! 

''Well, what do you say? Don't it seem damp towards 
the right?" 

''I think it does — and may be the river is that way. 
Don't it seem like rising ground towards the left, to youf " 

' ' It does — let 's try the left — we 've had enough of thicket 
for one day — hark! hark! 

' ' Bow-wow-wow ! bow-wow ! " on the left. 

' ' Sure enough ! a dog towards the left ! push ahead that 
way. ' ' 

The canine outcry was reduplicated and prolonged ; and 
we were soon rewarded for our sagacity in going to the 
left by coming whack-up against a worm-fence ! But grop- 
ing our way through this impediment, a light was soon dis- 
cerned gleaming through some crevice; and the noise of 
the dog then subsided into an angry growl — which growl 
was again exchanged into a bark, as we let out our hearty 
and door-penetrating ''HuUow. " This backwoods sonnet 
had soon the desired effect on the clapboard shutter ; for it 
now creaked slowly ojDen, and allowed to issue from the 
cabin the following reply in a strong soprano, yet vibratory 
from apprehension — 

''Well — who be you? what's a wantin'?" 

' ' Strangers, ma 'am, from the Big Meeting at Vincennes ; 
we've been lost all day in the swamp below Stafford's — and 
we're lost now. Will you be so kind as to let us stay the 
rest of the night here ? " 

"Well, it's most powerful onconvenient — couldn't you 
sort a keep on to Fairplay — tain't more nor two miles no 
how, and you 'd git mighty good 'comedashins thar ? ' ' 



3i8 Readings in Indiana History 

' ' Oh ! ma 'am, we 'd never find the way in the dark. Be- 
side our horses are nearly given out; and we ourselves 
haven't touched food for nearly two days " 

''Well! now! if that aint most too powerful hard like- 



I'm a poor lone woman body — but I can't let you go on — so 
come in. But, strangers, you will find things right down 
poor here, and have to sleep on the floor, as 'cos I've no 
more nor two beds and them's all tuk up by me and the 
children. Howsoever, thar's a corn heap over thar to feed 
your critturs; but we're now teetotally out of meal; — and 
Bill 's to start in the morning for a grist — and I 'm powerful 
sorry we've nothin' to eat " 

''Oh! thank you, ma'am — never mind us — thank you — 
never mind ! If we get corn for our poor brutes, and shel- 
ter for ourselves, that will do — thank you, ma'am — never 
mind ! ' ' 

Having fed our jaded animals we entered the cabin, and 
depositing our saddles and furniture in one corner, we sat 
down on two rude stools, like some modern Ottomans in 
the city; being so low as to force one's knees and chin into 
near proximity. They had, indeed, no covering or cushion, 
unless such be considered the lone woman's indescribable 
dress, lying on the one, and Bill's tow-linen breeches on the 
other — articles we considerately, however, removed for fear 
of soiling. 

The next thing we did was to poke up the slumbering 
fire ; by the light of which we first cast rueful looks on one 
another, and then some sideway glances around the apart- 
ment. In one spot, stood a barrel with an empty bag of dim 
whiteness, hanging partly in and partly out, while across 
its top was laid a kneading bowl, and in that a small wash- 
ing machine, the barrel being manifestly the repository of 
meal, and the bag the very aifair Bill was to ride, in the 
morning, to mill. Near us was a shelf holding a few utensils 
for mush and milk, several tin cups, a wooden bowl in need 
of scouring, and some calabashes ; a large calabash we had 
noticed outside the door, having a small grape vine for a 
handle, and intended to represent a bucket for water and 



Religious Life 319 

other wet and dry uses. In a strap of deerskin nailed un- 
der the shelf were stuck certain knives, some ornamented 
with buck-horn handles, one or two with corncob handles, 
and one handleless; and interspersed judiciously in the 
same strap were pincushions, scissors, comb, and a few 
other et ceteras of a hoosiery toilette. 

But the curiosities were *'the two beds and all tuk up 
by the mother and the childurn. " What the bedsteads 
were made of was not ascertained. Rickety they were, 
screeching, squirming, and wriggling at every slight motion 
of the sleeping household ; but tough and seasoned too must 
they have been to bear up under their respective loads, es- 
pecially considering the way some that night kicked under 
the covers, and occasionally over them! 

In one bed were the lone (?) woman and two children; 
and in this I am confident, having counted three heads and 
one with a cap on. In the other were three or four bodies — 
Uncle John insisted on four, but I counted only three 
heads at the bolster ; yet Uncle John in his very last letter 
holds to it, that he saw another head sticking out near the 
foot, and two or three legs in such direction as could come 
only from a head in that latitude. Strong presumptive evi- 
dence, granted; yet only presumptive, for a real backwoods 
boy can twist himself all around ; besides, the fleas that night 
made the bed loads twist their utmost, and legs and arms 
became so surprisingly commingled, that no ordinary spec- 
tator could tell to what bodies they severally pertained. 
And never were beds so ''all tuk up", nor so wonderfully 
slept all over, till by day-light the whole of their sleep must 
have been fully extracted; and hence, it was plain enough 
there was no room for Uncle John or me in either bed ; and 
that if we wanted any sleep we must get it out of the pun- 
cheons. We spread, therefore, our horse-blankets each on 
a puncheon, our separating line being an interstice of three 
inches ; and, transforming saddle-bags into pillows, we 
essayed to sleep away our weariness and hunger. But the 
''sweet restorer's" balmy influences were all confined that 
night to the regular beds; and that, among other causes, 



320 Readings in Indiana History 

owing to a motherly she-swine with a litter of ever so many 
pigs, and some other bristled gentry in the basement, 
whence ascended an overpowering dry hickorynut fra- 
grance, and endless variations of grant, squeak, and shuffle 
— and in all likelihood the oceans of fleas disturbing us ! If 
not thence, I leave to such critics to ascertain, who delight 
in saying and finding smart things. 

Upon the whole it was not, then, so odd that about an 
hour before dawn, we made ready to set out in search of 
Fairplay. And of course our preparations waked the lone 
woman; when the ''cap" already named, being elevated 
above the sleeping line of the other heads, and also several 
capless pates of dirty matted hair — gender indeterminate — 
being so raised and thrust forth in the other bed, we thus 
held our farewell colloquy: 

''Well, my good friend, we thank you kindly for your 
hospitality, and we are about starting now — what shall we 
pay you? 

"Laws! bless you, stranger! how you talk! — why do y' 
allow I'd axe people what's lost anything? — and such 
'comedashins ? " 

"Oh! ma'am — but we put you to trouble — " 

"Trouble! — I don't mind trouble now nohow — I've had 
too big a share on it to mind it any more almost — " 

"Why, ma'am, you've been very kind — and we really 
can't go away till we pay you something — " 

"Stranger!— I sees you wants to do what's right — but 
you needn't take out that pu's — I'll have to be a most 
powerful heap poorer nor I'm now, afore I'll take anything 
for sich poor shelter to feller critturs what's lost — and 
them a comin' from meetin' too! Aint that oldermost 
stranger a kinder sort a preacher?" 

"No, my friend, I'm only a member " 

"Well, — I couldn't axe meetin' folks nothin' for the best. 
I'm right glad you didn't take the right hand trail below 
our fence, you'd got into the swamp agin. Now jist mind 
when you come to a big sugar what blow'd down by the 
hurricane, and you take the left, and that will git you clear 



Religious Life 321 

of the bio — and then keep rite strate on forrerd and you'll 
soon git to Fairplay [near Bloomfield]." 

Farewells were then cordially exchanged, and we left 
the poor lone woman with emotions of pity, gratitude, and 
admiration; and we thought of the ''cup of cold water" — 
"the two mites" — of "one half the world knows not how 
the other lives" — and "man wants but little here be- 
low" and — of all similar sacred and secular sayings, till 
we came to the prostrate sugar-tree. There we made a 
judicious digi^ession to avoid miring and suffocating in the 
morass, and then shortly after dismounted safe and sound, 
but frightfully hungry, at Fairplay. 



21—164.3 



CHAPTER XVII 

PIONEER SCHOOLS 

Like all other pioneer institutions, their schools were unsystem- 
atic and poor. They had little money and less time to devote to 
the work. ]\Iuch as they believed in education, they found it im- 
possible to educate their children as they wished. As a result 
there was far more ignorance in the second generation of Indian- 
ians than in the first. The parents simply did the best they could. 




First Log Sohoolhouso in Wayne County. Also picture of Jonathan Roberts, 
who attended school in this building in 1814. 

This applies to teachers, books, buildings, and clothing. Hard 
necessity will explain nearly all their shortcomings. That they 
believed in education is shown by the laws they enacted and the 
letters they wrote. There is no more pathetic feature of our his- 
tory than this early struggle to establish schools. The woods, the 
roads, the streams, and even the wild animals seemed to oppose 
and were banded together to prevent the children from having 
school. 



(322) 



Pioneer Schools 323 

104. A Pioneer School 

(From The First of the Hoosiers, by Geop.ge Gary Eggleston 11903]. pp. 
32-46. By courtesy of the author's estate.) 

The schools characterized by the Egglestons were far better than 
the average in the State. This does not mean that Edward Eggle- 
ston, in his Hoosier Schoolmaster, gave us a fair description of a 
typical school. According to the rules of his art he emphasized his 
characters and so made certain features of his school stand out 
over-prominently. Some of the independent pioneer schools were 
models of their kind and would so be considered to-day. 

The school which Edward and I first attended was in 
some respects interesting. It was held in a log cabin a 
mile or so from our house. The master was a very es- 
timable man named Benefiel, who had taught our mother 
before us. He enjoyed an enviable reputation for scholar- 
ship, which I have no doubt was thoroughly well deserved. 
For one thing the "rule of three" had set no bounds to his 
mathematical acquirements. It was wonderingiy said of 
him that "he knew the whole arithmetic," and it was 
darkly whispered that in addition to that he possessed cer- 
tain occult knowledge which in our time would be described 
as an acquaintance with elementary Algebra and the rudi- 
ments of Geometry. I think I do not wrong the good 
man's memory or betray any confidence by saying that I 
met him many years afterward, when he was an old man 
and I a college student, and that he then confessed to me 
that even at the time of my earliest school days he had been 
able to find out the value of a; in a simple equation. 

But when Edward Eggleston was six years old and I 
four, Mr. Benefiel kept school upon the primitive plan that 
was then everywhere accepted. 

There was only one point of radical difference between 
different schools in those days; some of them were "loud 
schools." Mr. Benefiel 's was a "loud" school. That is to 
say, he required all his pupils to study their lessons "out 
loud, " in order that he might be sure they were all studying. 

Discipline in those days always took thj form of phys- 
ical chastisement. On his way to school every morning 
the master cut and trimmed eight or ten stout beechen 



324 Readings in Indiana History 

"switches," as tliey were called — ox goads would have been 
a fitter name. They were about five feet long and of a 
goodly diameter. These he placed on two pegs in the wall 
just over his desk — all of them but one. That one he kept 
always on his desk or in his strong right hand for instant 
use when needed. Thus armed for the day's work the 
master felt himself equipped to compel good behavior and 
a due advancement in learning on the part of his ' ' scholars ' ' 
— for the words "teacher" and "pupil" were not in school 
use at that time. It was always "the master" and "the 
scholars." 

The belligerent method of instruction extended to every 
matter that required correction or any encouragement to 
endeavor. If a boy misspelled a word, he instantly received 
a sharp cut from the master's switch. If he failed to get 
the right answer to his "sum" he was encouraged to try 
harder by two or three stinging blows. If he whispered 
to a neighbor without first saying to the master, "Please 
may I speak to Johnny f" the fault was treated with the 
same severity as a grave moral delinquency, and punished 
by at least half a dozen lashes. If one of the little boys, who 
was too young to "take Avritin'," crawled upon the bench 
which fronted the long writing desk, and thus turned his 
back upon the master, an attack from the rear was sure to 
come quickly. 

In the case of more serious offences, involving real 
moral delinquency, the offender was summoned to the open 
space in front of the master's desk, where he was required 
to remove his coat, if he had one, and there he was severely 
flogged. Not in Mr. Benefiel's school, but in another which 
Edward and I attended some years later in the little city 
of Madison, I several times saw shirts deeply stained with 
blood when these castigations were over. 

There were here and there schoolmasters disposed to 
experiment in what I may properly call pedagogic penology. 
These sought to give the element of variety to school dis- 
cipline, and to reduce the use of the rod somewhat, by the 
substitution of such devices as the fools' caps, dunces' 



Pioneer Schools 325 

stools and the like. One of them sometimes punished a 
boy by making liim stand on one leg till he could stand no 
more, and then flogging him for putting the other foot 
down. But such experiments were usually unsuccessful, at 
least in the country districts. The boj^s, accustomed as 
they were to a severer method, were apt to conclude that 
a master thus gently minded was ''afeard" to whip them, 
and in most such cases they went into insolent revolt in an 
endeavor to see how far they might defy an authority which 
they deemed weakly irresolute. The struggle between the 
master and the scholars was continuous, and it was ac- 
counted by the boys rather as an enjoyable than a regret- 
table part of their school-boy life. 

If the master assumed to "keep school" on a holiday, 
the scholars all attended. But they went to school earlier 
than usual, took possession there and locked the master out, 
barricading doors and windows and standing upon their 
defense. Then ensued a struggle, the master trying to 
force his way into the school-house and the scholars trying 
to keep him out. If he got in, he flogged everybody con- 
cerned. If the scholars were successful in their defense 
the master secured peace upon terms that were quite well 
understood in advance. He agreed to 'Hreat" the school 
to a bushel of apples and to punish nobody for having par- 
ticipated in the rebellion. Just why a bushel of apples 
should have been so placative in a country in which every- 
body had unlimited apples at home, it is difficult to con- 
jecture. Perhaps it was because apples were about the 
only thing available for the purpose, and because their 
enforced contribution marked and signalized victory on the 
part of the scholars. It was an unequal contest in every 
way. The scholars had the advantage of possession, forti- 
fication, and superior numbers. But these odds were in a 
measure offset by the inequality of the stakes, as it were. 
The scholars risked a very painful punishment .upon the 
chance of getting only some apples. 

Sometimes the master succeeded in carrying the fort. 
Readers of The Hoosier Schoolmaster will remember 



326 Readings in Indiana History 

that Ralph Hartsook did so. But usually the master wa? 
forced to yield the victory to the insurgent scholars. 

The master's authority was by tradition held to extend 
for half a mile from the school-house in every direction. 
Any otTense committed within that distance, on the way 
to or from school, was within the jurisdiction. When two 
boys arranged for a tight, or when one boy had made up 
his mind to thrash another, the two would walk hj the same 
road — though their homes might lie in the opposite direc- 
tions — until the half mile line was passed. Then the set-to 
would occur, without the fear of the schoolmaster before 
the eyes of the combatants. 

Both Edward and I could read before we entered our 
first school. Neither of us, indeed, could ever remember 
a time when we could not read and ride a horse, and neither 
ever knew when or how he learned either art. In our 
father's house the cliildren "staggered against books" in 
their infancy, as Dr. Holmes put the matter. But at school 
no account whatever was taken of our abilitv to read, nor 
were we permitted to practice that art. It was the fixed 
rule of the master that each scholar should "go through 
the spelling-book three times, twice on the book and once 
off the book," before beginning to read. "On the book" 
meant spelling and pronouncing the words, with the book 
before the eyes. "Off the book" meant spelling from mem- 
ory as the words were given out. 

In addition to the regular spelling lessons of the day, 
the whole school was required, as a final exercise each after- 
noon, to stand in one long row, called "the big spelling 
class," for competitive examination in the art. If a word 
was misspelled by one, it was passed to the next below, 
and so on until some one succeeded in spelling it correctly. 
The successful speller was said to have "turned down" 
all who had failed, and was entitled to take his place above 
them in the line. At the close of the exercise the scholar 
who stood at the head of the class was assigned to the 
foot of it for the next day, and a record was kept of the 
number of times each had "gone foot." Some small dis- 



Pioneer Schools 327 

tinction was supposed to have been achieved by the scholar 
whose record at the end of the term showed the greatest 
number of goings to the foot. This was about the only use 
made of the principle of rewards in the country schools at 
that time. No other word of praise was ever spoken by 
the teacher. Indeed, he would have put himself in serious 
danger of losing his place had he indulged any impulse 
he might have had to commend a pupil. It was at that 
time held that commendation was sure to spoil a child and 
breed vanity and conceit in his mind. 

The prominence given to spelling over all other educa- 
tional agencies at that time was still further emphasized 
by frequent ''spelling matches." My brother has so fully 
described these that I shall not here attempt to add any- 
thing to what he wrote concerning them. His account of 
these contests led to their revival all over the country as 
a novel and amusing form of social entertainment. 

105. "Loud" Schools 

(From The Indianapolis News, March 16, 1S92 ; article by Judge David D. 

Banta.) 

The first schools I attended were "loud schools." Loud 
schools were the rule in the beginning here in Indiana ; 
silent ones were the exception. The odds in the argument 
were believed to be in favor of the loud schools. A cele- 
brated Scotch teacher, Alexander Kinmont, of Cincinnati, 
as late as 1837, would conduct school on uo other method. 
He claimed that it is the practical, philosophical system by 
which boys can be trained for business on a steam.boat 
wharf or any other place. Both the boys and girls spelled 
and read at the tops of their voices, on occasion, and some- 
times the roar of their lesson-getting could be heard for 
a half to three-quarters of a mile. It is not much wonder 
that Owen Davis took his fiddle to school and solaced him- 
self by playing airs while his scholars were shouting over 
their lessons. The teacher of a loud school who would 
keep his pupils at work labored under a great disadvant- 
age. The idler who was roaming at one word, or over a 



328 Readings in Indiana History 

line of poetry or trumpeting througli his nose, was, for 
aught the teacher knew, committing his lesson. It was said 
of one boy in an Orange county school that he "repeated 
the one word 'heptorpy' from morning till noon and from 
noon till night in order to make the teacher believe he was 
studying his lesson." 

Fifty or a hundred years ago the swishing of the switch 
was heard everywhere, in the family circle and in the school- 
house, throughout the length and breadth of the land. The 
fathers made their children ''mind." The switch was the 
usual instrument, and its prompt and free use doubtless 
gave birth to such expressive phrases as ''a lick and a 
promise," "the word with the bark on," and "tan your 
jacket." The schoolmaster, standing in the place of the 
parent, punished as freely and savagely, and usually with 
the full approval, of the parent. One of the most curious 
phases of the flagellating period was the almost universal 
prevalence of the sentiment that the schoolmaster who 
neglected the frequent use of the rod was a failure as a 
teacher. I had a friend who, much less than fifty years 
ago, was in the habit of occasionally playing pedagogue. 
In one of his schools he had a nice company of country 
urchins, between whom and himself there was the very 
best of feeling. After the school had run smoothly for a 
month or six weeks and no whipping done, his patrons be- 
gan to think something was wrong. One morning one of 
them met him and bluntly told him that he was making a 
mistake — that he was "not whipping anybody." 

" Wy> who '11 1 whip ! " he asked. 

"Whip Sam," was the prompt answer. 

"Wliat for! He's lazy, I know; but I can't whip him 
for laziness, can I?" asked the pedagogue. 

"Yes, give it to him. Sam's my boy and I know he 
needs it every day. 



>) 



Pioneer Schools 329 

100. School Customs of Eai-ly Days 

(From Indiana Magazine of History, II, pp. 191-194; account hy Jvdg\i 

David D. Uanta. ) 

Among the school customs of early days which have 
entirely disappeared was that described as "turning 
out" or "barring out" the teacher — a sport that was 
never indulged in in Indiana at any other than Christmas 
time. 

The ostensible object in barring out a teacher was to 
comi^el him to "treat" his school. It was a sort of legal- 
ized rebellion of the scholars against the master's author- 
ity, accompanied by a forced levy with which to purchase 
the particular article that was to compose the treat, or 
else to furnish the treat outright himself. Usually the 
deposed monarch furnished the money and the rebels 
bought the "treat." 

The "treat" here in Indiana, as far as I have seen, 
always consisted of something to eat or drink. In western 
Pennsylvania, according to Breckenridge 's Recollections 
of the West, the object was to compel a vacation. In all 
cases the barring out was made the occasion of more or 
less revelry and disorder. According to a statement made 
in the Life of Thomas Jefferson Fisher, a Kentucky 
preacher, barring out was observed "on the first holidaj^ 
that came, or at the end of the session." I find no evi- 
dence in this State of its observance at the end of a ses- 
sion, although some teachers were in the habit of making 
presents to their scholars at that time. Such presents 
were always voluntarily made, however, and as far as my 
observations went, always consisted of something else 
than articles of food or drink. 

I find but two instances recorded of the use of whiskey 
in this State with which to treat the school. One of these 
was in Jefferson county, and the other in Morgan. The 
episode in the last-named county is reported to have oc- 
curred at Christmas of the cold winter of 1825- '26. When 
the teacher reached the schoolhouse on that extraordinary 
cold morning he found the door barred and all the big boys 



330 Readings in Indiana History 

on the inside. Of course the pedagogue wanted in, but 
the boys declared that it would take a ''treat" to open the 
door that morning. Accordingly, Mr. Conduitt went to the 
nearest "grocery" and purchased about a gallon of whis- 
key, with which he returned and again applied for admit- 
tance. The door was at once unbarred and the man with 
the jug admitted, whereupon a season of "high jinks" fol- 
lowed. The master dealt out the liquor liberally, it would 
seem, for some of the boys, becoming "too full for utter- 
ance," had to be "sent home in disgrace." One of these 
boys, it is recorded, "went home swaggering, happy as a 
lark, loaded to the muzzle, with a ceaseless fire of talk, but 
his father quickly took down the big gad and gave the boy 
a dressing that he remembers to the present. ' ' 

The following account of a "turning out" will prove of 
interest in this connection. It occurred in Nashville, in 
this State. "The custom" [of treating], says the histo- 
rian, "was so universal that the scholars demanded their 
right to it, and were upheld by their parents. Christmas 
came, and Mr. Gould was informed that he must treat. The 
scholars refused to come to order when called and the 
teacher refused to treat. After a short time the larger 
boys forcibly captured the teacher, bound him hand and 
foot, and carried him down to Grassy creek to be severely 
ducked in cold water unless he surrendered and treated. 
Several men of the town accompanied this novel expedition. 
The stubborn teacher was carried out into the stream by 
the larger boys, who took off their shoes and rolled up 
their pants and waded out. A parley was held, but the 
teacher was obstinate and was on the point of being un- 
ceremoniously baptized, when W. S. Roberts interceded, 
and after some sharp words pro and con, secured from the 
teacher the promise to treat on candy and apples. He was 
then released, and the cavalcade marched up to the store, 
where all were given a taste of the above-named delicacies. " 

It must be said that those teachers who looked on the 
bright side of the custom, and gave in after a brief show of 
resistance, usually came out the best. On one occasion the 



Pioneer Schools 331 

big boys of one of William Surface's school barred the 
school door against him. On reaching the schoolhouse he 
was, of course, refused entrance except on the usual con- 
dition. But the teacher declined answering their oral de- 
mands, because, he said, ''some dispute might arise as to 
what was said." If they had terms to propose they must 
submit them in writing. This seemed reasonable, so the 
boys put their demand on paper, which, together with pen 
and ink, was handed to the diplomat on the outside. Beneath 
the boy's scrawl he wrote, "I except to the above propo- 
sition — William Surface," and passed the writing back. 
The boys were satisfied and opened the door. "You had 
better read with care what I have written," said the master 
to the scholars, when safe within. "It is one thing to accept 
a proposition and quite another thing to except it." The 
boys, now crestfallen, acknowledged their mistake, but the 
teacher, after "improving the occasion of warning them 
against the evil of carelessness in the business transactions 
of life," generously treated and was thereafter loved better 
than ever before. 

A teacher by the name of Groves, who taught in a dis- 
trict close up to the Marion county line, one Christmas 
morning, found himself barred out. Living in ' ' the school- 
master 's cabin" hard by, he called to his wife to assist 
him. The weather was extremely cold, and it occurred to 
him that if he could drown out the fire he could freeze out 
the rebellion, and so, ascending the roof to the top of the 
chimney, his wife handed up buckets of water, which he 
poured down on the school fire. But it was all in vain. 
The boys, raking the coals out on the broad hearth, defied 
him. His next thought was to smoke them out, and to 
that end he laid boards over the chimney top. But the boys 
had thought of that and provided themselves with a long 
pole with which to remove the boards. Not to be outdone, 
Groves replaced the boards over the chimney and calling 
upon his wife, who seems to have entered with spirit 
into his plans, she gallantly mounted to the comb of the 
roof and took her seat on the boardg to hold them down 



332 Readings in Indiana History 

while her husband stationed himself at the door below. 
But the boys tried the pole again, and with such vigor that 
they overthrew the master's dame, who, at the risk of her 
life and limb, came tumbling to the ground. Picking her- 
self up she returned to her own domicile, leaving her lord 
to fight the battle out the best he could. As the girls and 
smaller children arrived he sent them to his own cabin, 
where his wife promised to keep watch and ward over 
them. One by one the garrison became captive to the vigi- 
lant master, who stood guard at the door, and was sent to 
the other house. By the time for dismissing in the after- 
noon every rebellious boy had been taken in and the school 
was in full blast in the master's cabin. 



CHAPTER XVIII 

CIVIC IDEALS OF THE PIONEERS 

The pioneers may have had ideals but they had neither time nor 
opportunity to put them into practice. There were too many things 
necessary to be done to allow the settlers to devote much time to 
ideals. The pioneer had to be a jack-of -all-trades if he was to live. 
His works were all temporary; when they took on systematic, per- 
manent form, he was no longer a pioneer. His house, his fences, 
his school, his government, his every-day life were full of temporary 
expedients. 

107. An Early Court Scene 

(From Thwaites' Early Western Travels, IX, pp. 277-278; accouut by 

James Flint [18201.) 

This incident took place at Charlesto\vn, Clark county, Septem- 
ber, 1820. 

The circuit court consists of a presiding judge, who 
makes a progress"**^ over the whole State, and who meets 
with two associate judges at the several seats of justice. 
Associate judges are local, and only act in their respective 
counties. One of these gentlemen opened the court at 
Charlestown last year in the absence of the presiding judge. 
A large jug, for holding cold water, that stood on the bench, 
had a caricature portrait of a judge painted on it, and 
several lawyers, on coming forward to open their cases, 
bowed to the figure, and directed their eyes to it during 
their speeches, occasioning much laughter in the house. It 
was not till the arrival of the presiding judge that the con- 
tempt was checked. Freedom on the part of lawyers 
seemed to be promoted in the back-country, in consequence 
of the bench being occasionally filled with men who are 
much inferior to those at the bar. The salary of the pre- 
siding judge (I have been told) is only seven hundred dol- 
lars a year. As he is engaged in public business and in 
travelling nearly the whole of his time, that sum can only 
defray his expenses, even under the most economical man- 
agement, so that there can be no great error in supposing 

40 "Progress" here means a tour, or .iourney, i. e., "riding the circuit." 

(333) 



334 



Readings in Indiana History 



that he acts gratuitously. The present presiding judge is 
a man who has distinguished himself in Indian warfare. 
Whatever opinion you may form of the bench here, you 
may be assured that it is occupied as a post of honor. 

Amongst the business of the court, the trial of a man 
who had stolen two horses excited much interest. On being 
sentenced to suffer thirty stripes, he was immediately led 
from the bar to the whipping-post. Every switch of the 
cow-hide drew a red line across his back. This was the 
second infliction of the kind that had been sanctioned by 
court in the State, since my coming into it. I do not notice 




Portersville Court House, 1818. 

the infrequency of punishment as wishing to occasion a 
belief that misdemeanors are seldom committed. Indeed, 
were it not for the absolute impunity obtained in most 
cases, we might soon see the partial development of a new 
system of physiognomy, one not founded on the features 
of the face, but on the striped lineaments of the back. Never, 
till now, did I so much value the usage of Scotland, where 
the inhabitant, on removing from one parish to another, 
carries with him the testimonial of the church. 



108. "Choke-Trap" Justice 

(From Recollections of the Early Settlement of the Wabash Valley, by 
Sanford C. Cox [1827], pp. 56-58.) 

This selection is not given as an illustration of the justice done 
by early Indiana courts, but rather as an illnstration of the ease by 
which the typical pioneer adjusted himself to circumstances. Like 
Ulysses he was ' ' a man of many wiles. ' ' 



Civic Ideals 335 

During the early history of Indiana, about the year 
1808, if my memory serves me correctly, in one of the 
neighborhoods on the east fork of the Whitewater, there 
occurred a flagrant breach of the peace, which demanded 
a summary exercise of the ''laws of the land." 

A certain ungallant offender had flogged his wife in a 
most barbarous manner, and then drove her from home. 
Bleeding and weeping, the poor woman appeared before 
Justice Tongs for redress. The Justice wrote out an affi- 
davit, which was signed, sworn to, and subscribed in due 
form, according to the then existing laws of the territory. 

A warrant was soon placed in the hands of a constable, 
commanding him to arrest, and forthwith bring the offender 
before Justice Tongs, to answer to the charge preferred 
against him. After an absence of some five or six hours, 
the constable returned with the prisoner in custody. The 
constable, however, truly had a vexatious time of it, for 
the prisoner, who was a man of giant bulk, and great mus- 
cular power, had frequently on the way, after he had con- 
sented peaceably to accompany him to the magistrate's 
office, stopped short and declared he would go no further — 
observing at the same time that neither he (the consta- 
ble) nor 'Squire Tongs had any business to meddle with 
his domestic relations. It was during one of those vexa- 
tious parleys — the constable coaxing and persuading, and 
the prisoner protesting and swinging back like an unruly 
ox— that the constable fortunately espied a hunter at a 
short distance, who was armed and accoutred in real back- 
woods style. 

The constable beckoned to the hunter, who came to his 
assistance, and who, after hearing the particulars of the 
affair, cocked his rifle, and soon galloped off (with) the 
prisoner to the 'Squire's oflice. 

But this was but the beginning of the trouble in the 
case. The witnesses were yet to be summoned and brought 
before the Justice — even the complaining witness had un- 
expectedly withdrawn from the house and premises of the 
Justice, and was to be looked after. 



336 Readings in Indiana History 

The hunter could not possibly stay long, as his com- 
rades were to meet him at a point down ten or fifteen miles 
distant that evening. The prisoner was quite sullen, and 
it was evident that the 'Squire could not keep him safely 
if the constable and hunter were to leave. And although 
the 'Squire's jurisdiction extended from the west line of 
the Ohio far toward the Rocky mountains, and from the 
Ohio river north to Green Bay, yet, so sparse was the 
neighborhood in point of population, and so scattered were 
the settlers, that he and his faithful constable found that 
it would be of little use to make a call upon the posse 
comitatus.'^^ But in this critical situation of affairs, the 
fruitful mind of the Justice hit upon a first-rate plan to 
keep the prisoner until the witnesses could be brought. 
It was simply to pry up the corner of his heavy eight railed 
fence, which stood hard by — make a crack two or three rails 
above the ground — and thrust the prisoner's head through 
the crack, and then take out the pry. 

As soon as the 'Squire made known his plan to the com- 
pany, they with one accord, resolved to adopt it. The con- 
stable immediately rolled out an empty bee-gum for a ful- 
crum, and applied a fence-rail for a lever, up went the 
fence, the Justice took hold of the prisoner's arm, and, 
with the assisting nudges of the hunter, who brought up 
the rear, rifle in hand, they thrust the prisoner's head 
through the crack nolens volens,^- and then took out the 
prop. There lay the offender safe enough, his head on 
one side of the fence, and his body on the other. The 
hunter went on his way, satisfied that he had done signal 
service for his country — and the constable could now be 
spared to hunt up the witnesses. 

The prisoner, in the meantime, although the crack in 
the fence was fully large enough for his neck without pinch- 
ing, kept squirming about, and bawling out lustily, "Choke 
trap ! the d 1 take your choke trap ! " 

Toward sunset the constable returned with the wit- 
nesses. The prisoner was taken from his singular duress, 

*i Posse comitatus, the power of the county ; the force of citizens which the 
sherifl; or constable may call to his assistance. 

*2 Nolens volens, unwilling or willing ; •'willy-nilly." 



Civic Ideals 337 

and was regularly tried for his misdemeanor. He was 
found guilty, mulct in a fine, and, as it appeared from the 
evidence on the trial that the defendant had been guilty 
aforetime of the same offense, the Justice sentenced him to 
three hours' imprisonment in jail. There being no jail 
within one hundred miles, the constable and the bystanders 
led the offender to the fence again — rolled up the gum, 
applied the rail, and thrust his head a second time through 
the fence. There he remained in limbo until ten o'clock 
that night; when, after giving security for the fine and 
costs, he was set at liberty, with not a few cautions that 
for the future he had better ''let Betsy alone," or he would 
get another application of the law and the ' ' choke trap. ' ' 

109. A Sheriff Outwitted 

(From Early Indiana Trials and Sketches, by Senator O. H. Smith [1857], 

pp. 28-29.) 

In early times, before the first land sales of the beautiful 
Whitewater valley, where Connersville, Liberty, Cambridge 
City, Centerville, and Richmond now stand, there lived 
upon the east bank of Whitewater, a mile below Conners- 
ville, a most remarkable woman by the name of Betty Fra- 
zier. She was a small, tough-looking, rather swarthy 
woman; her husband, George Frazier, was a poor cripple, 
and with their children was entirely supported by Betty. 
They had settled upon a small fraction of government land, 
intending to purchase at the sales. The land office was at 
Cincinnati, and General James Findlay was the receiver. ^^ 
The spring of the year, after a severe winter, had come; 
the sales were to take place the next winter, and Betty had 
the season before her to raise the money to pay for her 
land. She commenced with a young stock of hogs, caring 
for them daily, driving them to the best mast, and pre- 
paring a good patch of corn for the fattening process. She 
had one horse only to tend her crop, and to ride to Cincin- 
nati when she drove her hogs down to sell, and buy her 
land. 



" Land office receiver, an official who received the money paid by settlers for 
land purcliasod of the government. 

22—1643 



338 Readings in Indiana History- 

One day in mid-summer she saw a horseman ride up to 
her cabin in full uniform. She met him at the bars : 

''Well, General Hanna, how do you do?" 

' ' Very well, Mrs. Frazier. ' ' 

"What on earth has brought you all the way from 
Brookville to my poor cabin?" 

"I am very sorry to tell you, Mrs. Frazier, that I am 
a sheriff, and have an execution against your property." 

' ' Well, General, I always submit to the law ; come with 
me to the stable and I will give you my only horse as the 
best I can do." 

There were no "exemption laws" then. Betty and the 
General proceeded to the stable. It was a strong log 
building with a single door, no window, overlaid with a 
solid platform of logs, and filled with hay for the horse. 
The door fastened outside with a large wooden pin in a log. 

' ' There, General, is the horse, take him. ' ' 

The General stepped in and commenced untying the 
horse. Betty immediately fastened the door outside, driv- 
ing the pin into the hole the full length, and left the General 
to his reflections while she attended to her household 
affairs. Time passed away; night came on; but no relief 
to the captured General. Morning came and with it came 
Betty. 

"Well, General, how did you sleep last night?" 

"Not very well. I am ready to compromise this mat- 
ter ; if you will let me out and show me the ford over White- 
water (the river was muddy and high), I will leave you 
the horse and return the execution 'no property found.' " 

"Upon your honor?" 

"Yes, upon honor." 

Betty opened the door. The General mounted his horse 
and silently followed Betty down to the river side. 

"There, General, you will go in just above the big syca- 
more, and come out at the haw-bush you see. ' ' 

The General started ; at the second step both horse and 
rider were out of sight, and the chapeau-^^ of the General 
was seen floating down the river. Still, being one of the 

" Chapeau, a plumed military hat. 



Civic Ideals 339 

pioneers, and his horse a tried swimmer, he gallantly 
stemmed the current, and exactly struck the haw-bush, his 
horse swimming to the very shore, while Betty stood on the 
bank screaming: 

''I guess the Brookville officers will let me alone now 
until I have sold my pigs and paid for my land. ' ' 

The General rode on, dripping wet, to his brigade that 
mustered that day. But the end was not yet. Time rolled 
on; the pigs grew to be well fatted hogs. Betty mounted 
her pony; the little boys started with the hogs for Cincin- 
nati. The distance was about seventy miles ; they had ten 
days to get there before the land sales. Nothing unusual 
occurred on the road until they arrived at New Trenton, at 
Squire Rockaf ellow 's. The night was stormy; the snow 
fell deep; next morning found Betty at the usual hour on 
the pony, well wrapped, with an infant a few hours old in 
her arms. She arrived with her hogs at Cincinnati the day 
before the sale, sold them for cash, and the late General 
Findlay told me that she stood by his side on the box and 
bid off her land, with her infant in her arms. 

Surely * ' truth is stranger than fiction. ' ' 

110. Legislating in the Backwoods 

(From Thwaites' Early Western Travels, IX, pp. 215-216; accouut by 

James Flint [1820]. Copyright. By special permission of the 

Arthur H. Clark Company, Cleveland.) 

Jeffersonville^ Indiana, March 10, 1820. 

The legislatures of new States consist of a few members. 
The consequence is that public acts for the exclusive advan- 
tage of private individuals are occasionally passed through 
influence or intrigue ; and the commendations which I have 
bestowed on the general government of America must not 
be held to apply indiscriminately to the administration of 
the local governments, at least in newly established States. 
Much of the business, it is said, is privately arranged before 
the questions are discussed in the house. Combinations 
are formed for effecting particular purposes. This is 
called ''log rolling" ; a very significant metaphor, borrowed 
from the practice of several farmers uniting in rolling to- 



340 



Readings in Indiana History 



gether large timber to be burnt. A number of bills are fre- 
quently conjoined by their movers, so that a member who 
takes a deep interest in one must vote for all of them to ob- 
tain the suffrage of the separate partisans. The member 
who deserts from the cabal might be leaving his own mo- 
tion without any other supporter than himself. 

The laying out of new counties, county towns, and lines 
of road seems to be a gratifying duty to backwoods legis- 
lators. Where a county includes a considerable tract of 
country it must be divided in two (parts). Wliere it is not 




Capitol Building of Indiana Territory, 1806 until 1813. 

(Dunn, History of Greater Indianapolis, Vol. I, p. 3.) 



large enough to permit of bisection, tbe county wanted (in- 
tended) must be made up from the extremities of four or 
five (counties), which are contiguous. A large population 
is not a prerequisite ; yet the convenience of the peoj)le is the 
pretext. A few neighbors who propose that their settle- 
ment should be made the nucleus of the new establishment, 
petition the assembly for a subdivision. If this is granted, 
commissioners are appointed to fix the new seat of justice. 
An eager contest for private advantage ensues, and al- 
though the ostensible object is public convenience, the new 
city is perhaps placed near the outline of its jurisdiction. 



Civic Ideals 341 

111. An Election at Terre Haute in 1851 

(From The Wabash, by J. Richard Beste [1855], II, pp. 170-175.) 

At length, on the 4th of August (1851); the election was 
to take place; and I walked to the great square of Terre 
Haute, in the center of which was the court house. In a 
door-way in the center of this was fixed a sort of sentry-box, 
in which sat two men appointed to receive the votes. Some 
few hundred people were standing about the square, twirl- 
ing their voting papers in their fingers, and chatting quietly 
together. I saw no sign of policeman or constable. The 
excitement which had endured while the minds of men were 
to be convinced or swayed seemed now to have given place 
to quiet action. Nothing more seemed to be expected than 
that each one should give his vote according to the deter- 
mination he had already formed. One of the voting papers 
was given to me, which I here copy : 

For Congress. 

EDWARD W. M'GAUGHEY. 
JOHN G. DAVIS. 



For Prosecuting Attorney. 

HARVEY D. SCOTT. 
HENRY SLAVENS. 
DELANA E. WILLIAMSON. 
WILLLIAM A. JONES. 

For Representative. 
(Two to be elected) 

ROBERT N. HUDSON. 
GRAFTON F. COOKERLEY. 
SAMUEL B. GOOKINS. 

Commissioner (2nd district). 

ISHMAEL PUGH. 
JOHN BARTON. 



342 Readings in Indiana History 

Assessor. 

STEPHEN H. TAYLOR. 
JOHN CLEM. 
STEPHEN D. GARTEELL. 
WILLIAM P. THORNTON. 

For the Constitution.*^ 

Against the Constitution. 

Exdusion and Colonization of Negroes and 
Mulattoes. 

No Exclusion and Colonization of Negroes 
and Mulattoes. 

The above was printed in the type here given and on 
yellow paper — which is the color of all government paper 
in the United States. 

The last question related to the proposal which Dr. 
Ushaw had mentioned to me, tending to the exclusion even 
of free negroes and people of color from the Territory of 
Indiana. 

Each voter was expected to write on the back of the yel- 
low slip of voting paper the names of those for whom he 
voted; and ''yes" or "no" in reference to other questions. 
Some were doing this on the counters of shops round the 
square ; others had already done so, and were twirling up 
their papers, so as to show only the printed side and con- 
ceal what they had written. One or two people, amongst 
whom was our landlord, Mr. Bunting, boasted to me that 
they always declared how they voted, and showed me that 
they had written their own names at the foot of the paper 
before they took it to the ballot-box ; this seemed to be con- 
sidered an unmeaning boast, rather offensive than other- 
wise to the general feeling — even of their equals. It cer- 
tainly implied that Mr. Bunting, and those who took such 
an extraordinary means of declaring themselves, might oth- 
erwise have been suspected of voting in opposition to the 
principles which they everywhere proclaimed. 

I went up to the ballot-box and watched the voters as 

«' The Constitution framed In 1851. 



Civic Ideals 343 

they came and dropped in their papers. This was done 
without question asked or word spoken, if the assessors^*^ 
or those who sat there knew the parties were entitled to 
vote. If there was any doubt as to their residence or other 
qualification, the assessors questioned them before they per- 
mitted them to drop their papers in the ballot-box. If still 
unconvinced, they made them hold up their right hand and 

say, "I swear that I am " so and so. All was done 

without hurry or noise; without bands, banners, or drink- 
ing. At the end of the day the ballot-box was unlocked ; the 
voting papers were unrolled by competent authorities ; and 
the number of votes on each question was cast up and de- 
clared. The Democratic candidate, who had taken the place 
that had been offered to Dr. Reed, was elected by a large 
majority. 

Remembering what I had often seen in England — the 
fighting, the drunkenness, the bribery, the demoralization 
of an election; the intimidation which coerced the prudent 
or the cowardly voter; the ruin which often overtook the 
conscientiously rash, but brave one — I knew not whether 
most to pity or to be indignant with my own countrymen; 
whether to pity them for what they suffer in the conscien- 
tious discharge of their duty or to be indignant with them 
for not asserting their right to that ballot which can alone 
enable them freely to declare their opinions, as they have 
a right to declare them. Without the ballot the franchise 
is, to every man in business who cannot afford to defy his 
customers, to every poor man who is in any way dependent 
upon another, either a mockery or a snare. Either protect 
the voter in the execution of the trust you impose upon him, 
or else legalize bribery. When you give a man a vote, either 
tell him that it is his own, a marketable commodity to do 
what he likes with and to sell to the highest bidder ; or else 
tell him that it is a trust which he is bound to dispose of ac- 
cording to his own conscience ; and protect him while doing 
so in the only way in which he and all advocates of the bal- 
lot believe he can be protected. You say that the ballot 
would not be an efficient protection ; if so, it will do you no 
harm. Why, then, deny it to us ? 

*** "Assessors" here means the election judees. 



CHAPTER XIX 
HEALTH OF THE PIONEERS 

The health of the western pioneers has so long been held up 
by novelists and poets as almost perfect that one is surprised in 
reading contemporary accounts to find it just the opposite. The 
forests of Indiana contained in its miasma and mosquitoes far 
more deadly enemies to the settlers than the Indians were. Ma- 
larial diseases were the rule. No family was safe from attack at 
any time. During the sultry summer time half the population were 
shaking with ague or burning with intermittent fever. In the 
winter exposure brought on its train of resultant diseases. Croup 
and cholera infantum took off the little ones by hundreds ; while 
colds neglected brought on pneumonia or consumption. It was 
not uncommon for a whole neighborhood to be desolated and towns 
depopulated in a single season. 

From 1818 to 1830 was the worst period. There were few 
physicians and they were so overworked that they soon fell vic- 
tims of the diseases they treated. The roads and streams hindered 
them in their work so that such diseases as croup usually got in 
their fatal work before the physician could reach the patient. 
Occasionally there was an unbroken family circle but in most 
cases half the children died in infancy, and it is not far from 
the fact to say that half the children had lost one or both parents 
before they reached the age of fourteen. Such diseases as small 
pox, cholera, yellow fever, milk-sickness, and typhoid fever were 
beyond medical skill and ran their mysterious course unmolested. 
The friends of the sufferers sat patiently with them through the 
long watches of the day and night and sorrowfully buried them 
after death. The hand of Providence was often seen in these afflic- 
tions and public fast days were sometimes ordered by the General 
Assembly. 

112. Sickness and Exposure in the Wilderness 

(From Early Settlement of Carroll County, by James Hervey Stewart 
[1872], pp. 77-80; account by Mrs. Frances Stirlin.) 

On the 16tli day of February, 1825, in company with Mr. 
Odell's family, I left Wayne County, Indiana, to emigrate 
to the Wabash country. Our journey lasted fourteen days. 

(344) 



Health of the Pioneers 345 

We had rain every day except two during the trip. The 
men would cut brush on which to lay our beds, to sleep. Our 
clothes would sometimes be wet upon our backs in the morn- 
ing. The country from the White river to the Wabash 
was an unbroken wilderness, uninhabited, with the excep- 
tion of a few Indians at Thorntown. We got along tol- 
erably well until we got this side of Thorntown, when our 
wagon broke down ; then I got into John Odell 's wagon and 
rode to Potato creek. There John Little met us with a horse 
and yoke of oxen. My husband went to the south fork of 
Wildcat creek to old Mr. Odell 's after a wagon. 

We encamped at Potato creek that night. The next 
morning I started with Little for his home on Flint creek, 
twenty-five miles distant. I got on the horse, with my baby 
in my lap, with Little on foot in advance. Sometimes it 
rained, and then it snowed as fast as it could come down. I 
was on the horse from sunrise until dark with a two-vear- 
old child in my arms. You may be sure that I was very much 
fatigued. The next day, March 2d, my husband came with 
our goods. On the day following he was taken sick and 
kept down about six weeks. We thought he would die. We 
had no doctor nor medicine. John Odell came to see us and 
brought a dose of tartar emetic and some blister flies. These 
with some butternut pills composed our stock of medicine, 
with a bottle of Bateman's drops, which we used as an ano- 
dyne [medicine to soothe pain]. 

He recovered, and we all kept well until August, when 
he was attacked again with fever and ague, and was very 
sick for some time. I was confined the 21st of August, and 
could procure a nurse for but two days, when I had to get 
up and perform my work as best I could. A man named 
Luce took sick and died near us. As almost everybody was 
sick, my husband and I had to see to him. My husband was 
sick and my baby was only a week old. We succeeded in 
getting help to dig his grave, and Mordecai Ellis made his 
coffin by splitting a basswood tree, dressing the boards witli 
broad- ax and jack-plane and painting them black. He made 
quite a decent looking coffin. Another family came to the 
neighborhood, who had settled on Deer creek on what is now 



346 Readings in Indiana History 

the Milroy farm, who all got sick and lost a child that is 
buried near the spot we now occupy. Their name was Gal- 
braith. They wanted me to wash for them, as they had had 
no washing done for six weeks. I told them I would try; 
and I did try, and performed as large a day's work as ever 
I did, when my baby was but three weeks old. 

The next December my husband came up to Deer creek 
and built a cabin. February 15, 1826, we started for our 
new home. We arrived here on Deer creek on the 19th. 
The weather was very cold, and the snow about a foot deep. 
We stopped at John Carey's and got some fire — we had no 
matches those times. We drove up to the cabin; I crawled 
under the wall, scraped away the snow and kindled a fire, 
while the men sawed out a door. The snow was about shoe- 
top deep in the house. We threw down some clapboards, 
and on them we placed our beds. We slept inside and the 
hogs outside. The next morning the mud was as deep in 
our cabin as the snow had been the evening before. The 
weather was cold. We built a log heap in our cabin, but 
still we almost froze. My husband would hew puncheons 
all day and chink our cabin at night. We were nearly three 
miles from our nearest neighbor. We brought cornmeal 
with us, sufficient, as we thought, to last until after plant- 
ing ; but it gave out and I had to pound corn in an iron pot 
with an iron wedge driven into the end of a handspike and 
sift it through a basket lid. We used the finest of the meal 
for breakfast and the coarse for dinner and supper. We 
got our corn planted about the middle of June, and then 
went to mill in a pirogue, down the Wabash, to a little corn- 
cracker near where Lafayette now stands. 

I was taken sick about the first of July, and both our 
children. I shook forty days with the ague without cessa- 
tion. We then got some quinine, which stopped it in ten 
days. I got able to ride on horseback, and while going to 
see John Ballard, who was sick at Mr. Odell's, my horse be- 
came frightened and threw me off ; and that brought on the 
ague more severely than ever, and it held on to me until 
Christmas. I never saw a woman except one (Sarah 
Odell) for three months. My husband was cook, washer- 



Health of the Pioneers 347 

woman and milkmaid during that time. In October my 
husband had to leave home for three days, and I was left at 
home with my two children. One night our dog fought 
some animal near the door, which had no shutter but a 
quilt. I was very much frightened, and our faithful dog 
was almost killed. He could not walk the next day. John 
Ballard stayed at our house after that till ray husband re- 
turned. 

113. The Pioneer Physician 

{ From Kemper, Medical History of Indiana, pp. 109-111 ; account by Dr. 

George T. Mac Coy.) 

It can not be said that our early doctors were all men 
of eminent scientific skill or training. Few of them held 
diplomas from medical colleges, for seventy or eighty years 
ago medical colleges were not as thick in the land as now. 
The pioneer doctors learned all they knew by reading, ob- 
servation and instruction under established practitioners 
and by their own after-experience. Men of fair education 
and good common sense in a few years gained good reputa- 
tions as successful physicians. They learned and were 
guided by actual practice more than by theories or the for- 
mulas laid down in the few books they were able to procure. 
Each doctor carried his own remedial agents — a small drug 
store — in a pair of saddlebags of huge dimensions, and 
dosed out with liberal hand. They rode on horseback to 
visit their patients, day or night, far or near, through the 
dense woods and over slashy paths and rough corduroy 
roads, fording or swimming streams and enduring innum- 
erable hardships which the physicians of today would not 
dare to encounter. 

During the years of the early settlement of the county 
the numerous rivers and creeks were fouled and obstructed 
by fallen timber, drifts and other accumulations of vege- 
table debris. The waters from freshets and overflows stood 
reeking and stagnant on the lowlands and in the sloughs 
and bayous, and gave out their noxious exhalations for 
miles and miles around, while thick forests and tangled un- 
dergrowth, in rich and rank profusion, almost equaled the 



348 Readings in Indiana History 

famed valley of the Amazon. The atmosphere was laden 
with pestilential miasma, particularly in the autumn sea- 
son, when biliary and malarial diseases were rife. Whole 
settlements were sometimes stricken down and rendered 
almost helpless. It is reliably stated that in the fall of 
1821 there was only one well man in the city of Columbus, 
a stalwart six-footer, who had evidently been brought up 
in a swamp. He was cook and nurse to the entire com- 
munity, and his memory deserves to be perpetuated. 

The doctors found the ague, in many instances, more 
than a match for their skill. It was of the real shaking, 
quaking variety, the chill lasting not infrequently three or 
four hours, to be followed by raging fever and intense, in- 
satiable thirst. So malignant was this type of fever that 
as many as three or four deaths of adults have occurred in 
one family in less than forty-eight hours. Peruvian bark 
and calomel would temporarily check the fever, but cold 
weather seemed to be the only thing that would stop this 
dreadful scourge, and even that failed in some cases, and the 
poor invalid either wore himself out or else wore out the dis- 
ease. (The relation of the mosquito to the prevalence of the 
disease was then not dreamed of.) In the early settlement 
the ' ' regulars ' ' in the treatment of the fever relied mainly 
on one remedy — calomel. It was, indeed, extraordinary upon 
the part of the physician to treat any form of disease witli- 
out the generous use of large doses of calomel. Not to sali- 
vate a person seemed to be regarded as almost allowing him 
or her to go to the grave without a saving effort. 

A patient ' ' sick of a fever ' ' must also be freely bled be- 
fore any internal remedy was administered. The lancet 
held sway alongside of calomel. If, in raising a log cabin, 
a man was thrown from his "corner" and badly bruised, 
the practice was to bleed him copiously on the spot as the 
first step toward his recovery. 



Health of the Pioneers 349 

114. The Life of the Pioneer Physician 

(From Kemper, Medical Histori/ of Indiana, pp. 33-36: acoount by Dr. 

Joel Pennington [1873].) 

I settled in tlie village of Milton (my present place of 
residence) in October, 1825. The town consisted of seven 
families. We resided during the winter in 10 x 12 cabins, 
with puncheon floors, clapboard roofs, stick and clay chim- 
neys and ample fireplaces. We passed the winter very com- 
fortably ; and had a full supply of all the substantials of life 
at low figures compared with present prices. 

About New Year I purchased of an old Friend (Quaker) 
a hindquarter of a beef, which cost, in payment of a doctor 
bill, 2^ cents per pound. Pork was worth from $1.25 to 
$1.50 per one hundred pounds; corn, 10 cents per bushel; 
potatoes 12^ cents ; turnips the same ; sweet potatoes, 25 
cents; wheat, 37^ cents, and all other products of the soil 
in proportional prices. 

Our first canal packets were run in connection with 
steamboat travel to Cincinnati, where most of our trading 
was done. This great change made the mode of traveling 
to points on the Ohio so different from our former manner 
of reaching the cities, through mud and rain, that we cer- 
tainly had good grounds for exultation. I will state for the 
information of the young men in the profession who never 
traveled over bad roads, that they can not realize the amount 
of labor and exposure to which we old doctors were sub- 
jected in the early practice in Indiana. We had no means 
of traveling except on foot or on horseback. Buggies had 
not reached so far West, and if they had they would have 
been useless, on account of the condition of the roads. Dur- 
ing twenty-five years or more I practiced on horseback, as 
also did my compeers ; to that exposure and horseback ex- 
ercise I am disposed to attribute a large share of the good 
health I possess at my advanced age. 

When called during the fever and wild delirium we 
seated the patient on the side of the bed and held him there, 
by the aid of assistants if necessary, opened a vein in his 
arm by making as large an orifice as practicable, and ah 
lowed the blood to flow until his pulse became soft and less 



350 Readings in Indiana History 

resisting, or until syncope supervened. We relied more on 
the effect produced than on the quantity of blood extracted, 
our object being to produce a decided impression on the 
heart's action. Our patient being in a sitting posture and 
the blood escaping from a free opening, it did not require 
a great length of time to produce the required effect. Often 
within ten to twenty minutes after f aintness or sickness oc- 
curred the subject of this mode of treatment would become 
bathed in a copious perspiration, and the violent fever or 
delirium existing a short time before would have entirely 
passed away. 

Under the above manner of treating a case of remittent 
fever it was no uncommon thing on our second visit to find 
our patient sitting up, feeling "pretty well, except a little 
weak, ' ' and within a few days able to return to his ordinary 
avocations. 

115. Some Old Recipes 

(From The Medical Investigator. 1847.) 

For Cholera Infantum 

Take a double handful of dewberry roots, a double 
handful of the root of cranesbill and two gallons of 
witchhazel leaves, boil these articles separately till the 
strength is all extracted; then strain, and pour the whole 
into one vessel, and boil down to a quart ; add a pint of the 
best French brandy, and a pound of loaf sugar. Dose, from 
a tablespoonful to a wine glassful; repeated according to 
circumstances, and continued until the action on the bowels 
is fully checked. 

Tincture of Lobelia 

Fill a jar with the green herb, well bruised and pressed, 
and for every quart which the jar will contain add three or 
four pods of common red pepper, then pour on good whis- 
key enough to cover the herb, and let it stand for use. The 
longer it stands the stronger it becomes. This forms an ex- 
cellent remedy in phthisic, croup, whooping-cough, bad 
colds, and all catarrhal affections, and is perfectly safe in 
its effects on all ages and conditions of persons. 



Health of the Pioneers 351 

For Yellow Jaundice 

Take a double handful of wild cherry tree bark, of the 
roots ; the same quantity of yellow poplar bark, of the roots ; 
of sarsaparilla roots ; of the bark of the red sumach roots ; 
half the quantity of bitter root. Boil these ingredients in 
two gallons of water until it is reduced to half a gallon ; pour 
off and strain the liquid. Then boil or simmer down to one 
pint; add this to one gallon of hard cider; shake it well; 
then add two ounces of garden madder, or the madder of 
the shops. Commence with half a wine glassful three times 
a day, increasing the dose gradually to half a teacupful or 
even more in bad cases. When you have drunk half, add 
another half -gallon of cider. 



CHAPTER XX 
REMOVAL OF THE INDIANS 

One of the chief reasons for the popularity of President Jackson 
was his policy of remo\ang the Indians beyond the IMississippi. He 
felt that they and the white settlers could never get on peaceably 
together. The Indians of Indiana, however, began going west as 
early as the time of their defeat by Wayne in 1795. In 1820 the 
Delawares who lived in the central part of the State, the New 
Purchase, were transported beyond the IMississippi. From that 
time it became the settled policy to remove them. The largest 
band, numbering over 700, was gathered together by John Tipton, 
in the fall of 1838, at Twin Lake, and removed. 

This procession in thirteen army wagons, ^vith 400 horses and 
the long train of women and children trudging along between lines 
of Federal and State troops, left the lakes September 4, 1838, and 
proceeded slowly down the ^Michigan road to Logansport. At 
Chippewa their missionary. Father Pettit, whom Bishop Brute 
had kindly sent them, gathered them together for their last church 
service in Indiana. The road was dry and dusty. The water, 
where it could be found at all, was hot and stagnant. So tiresome 
was the march that scores of the guards deserted, stealing the In- 
dians' horses to get away on. 

Disease broke out among the children. Everj^ camp ground 
became a graveyard. Physicians from Logansport met them and 
reported over three hundred sick and unfit for travel. They 
reached the Battleground near Lafayette September 11. General 
Tipton here distributed $5,000 worth of presents. September 14, 
they reached Danville, 111. Large numbers of the sick were aban- 
doned on the road. Children were dying at the rate of three to 
five per da3^ Father Pettit, who accompanied them to their new 
home on the Osage river, died from the effects of the trip. It was 
rightly called "The Trail of Death." 



'352) 



Removal oi the Indians 353 

n«. The Trail of Death 

(From A Pioneer History of /ndiana, by Col. Wli.iam M, Cockbum [1007], 

pp. 540-542. J 

The Legislature of Indiana requested the Congress of 
the United States to extinguish all the Indian titles inside 
of the State. The request was granted and a ti-eaty with 
the Pottawattomie Indians ceded to the Government of the 
United States six million acres of land, being all tliey owned. 
A little later the Miami Indians, through the good offices of 
Col. A. C. Pepper, the Indian agent, sold a considerable 
part of the most desirable portion of their reserve to tlie 
United States. 

In July, 1837, Col. A. C. Pfpper had a meeting with the 
Pottawattomie Indians at Lake Kewanna for the jmrpose 
of removing them to the west of the Mississippi v'wcr. Tliat 
fall George H. Prophet, of Petersburg, Indiana, conducted 
to the west of the Mississippi river a portion of the Potta- 
wattomie Indians. The next year Colonel Pepper and Gen- 
eral Tifjton, A\dth a body of United States soldiers, con- 
ducted about one thousand of these Indians to the west of 
the Mississippi river. 

It was a sad and mournful spectacle to witness these 
children of the forest slowly retiring from the home of their 
childhood, which not only contained the graves of their 
revered ancestors, but also many endearing scenes to which 
their memories would ever recur as sunny spots along their 
pathway through the wilderness. They felt that they were 
bidding farewell to the hills, valleys and streams of their 
infancy, the more exciting scenes on the hunting grounds of 
their advanced youth, as well as the sturdy battlefields 
where they had contended in riper manhood, on which they 
had received wounds, and where many of their friends and 
loved relatives had fallen covered with gore and glory. All 
these they were leaving behind them to be desecrated by the 
plowshare of the white man. As they cast mournful glances 
back at these loved scenes, which were rapidly fading in the 
distance, tears fell from the cheeks of the downcast war- 
rior, old men trembled, matrons wept, the swarthy maiden's 

2.'5— 1^.3 



354 Readings in Indiana History 

cheek turned pale and sighs and half-suppressed sobs es- 
caped from the motley groups as they passed along, some 
on horseback and some on foot, and others in wagons, sad 
as a funeral procession. Several of the aged warriors were 
seen to cast glances toward the sky as if they were implor- 
ing aid from the spirits of their departed heroes, who were 
looking down upon them from the clouds, or from the Great 
Spirit, who would ultimately redress the wrongs of the red 
man whose broken bow had fallen from his hand and whose 
sad heart was bleeding within him. Ever and anon one of 
the party would start out into the brush and break back to 
their old encampments on Eel river and on the Tippecanoe, 
declaring they would rather die than be banished from their 
country. 

Thus scores of discontented emigrants returned from 
different points on their journey, and it was several years 
before they could be induced to join their countrymen on 
the west of the Mississippi. 

These two nations of Indians, the Pottawattomies and 
Miamis, were the proudest and most determined of all the 
Indians who inhabited northern Indiana. 



PART IV. A STATE IN THE MAKING, 1836-1844 



CHAPTER XXI 

117. Introductory Sketch 

The period from 1836 to 1850 was a time of social organization. 
By that time the early settlers had put their farms in order and 
had means and leisure for thought. This condition brought the 
pioneer period to an end. The change of course occupied many 
years. It began in 1816 with the State Constitution and has not ' 
yet fully ended. But the period of greatest activity and interest 
was the one noted above. 

An examination of their surroundings and conditions showed 
the pioneers that everything was unsatisfactory. Their children 
were growing up in ignorance and they tried to organize schools. 
The State University, the county seminaries, the district schools, 
were the results of their efforts to construct a State school system. 
Their churches were the groves, barns, barrooms, and houses wliich 
chance and convenience offered. Between 1820 and 1840 the Cath- 
olics organized the State under the Bishop of Vincennes; the 
Methodists organized it into districts and conferences ; the Presby- 
terians into presbyteries and synods ; the Baptists into assoeiations 
and conventions. The Catholics established their colleges at Vin- 
cennes and Notre Dame ; the Presbyterians at Hanover ; the jMeth- 
odists at Greencastle ; the Baptists at Franklin ; the Christians at 
Indianapolis. Politicians organized themselves into Jacksonian 
Democratic, and Clay Whig parties. The farmers of each county 
gathered into a county Agricultural Society, with a State Agricul- 
tural Society at the capital. The physicians divided the State into 
districts in each of which was a medical society with power to license 
physicians, and over all these was a State Medical Society at Indian- 
apolis. A State bank was organized in 1834. A State system of 
Internal Improvements (pikes, canals, railroads) was begiin in 
1836, which reached almost every county in the State. The news- 
paper editors organized a State editorial association. Judge Isaac 
Blackford published the decisions of the Supreme Court in the 
State. This activity leaves no doubt as to the character of the 
period. 

(355) 



356 



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ORANGE 



DUBOIS 



wASHinoTon 



RIPLEY 1 ^^-«-^ 



DEARBORri 




5C0TT 



CLARK 



3' , 



CRAWFORD 



BU.C L^i«*^'^'^V5PEnCER 



PERRY 



-har.,5omV/ INDIANA IN 1836 

E.V.SHOCKLEY 



- Turnpikes 

-H-l-l-h Railroads 



I I I I I Canals completed 
•— Canals projected 



CHAPTER XXII 
INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS 

The history of the canal system in Indiana begins with an act 
of Consrress approved March 2, 1827. This act granted to the State, 
for the purpose of aiding to build a canal to unite the navigable 
waters of the Maumee and the Wabash, a strip of land one-half 
of five sections wide on either side of the canal ; reserving for the 
United States alternate sections. January 5, 1828, Indiana ac- 
cepted this gift. Other sections of the State were not satisfied, so 
an agitation commenced to have a system constructed reach- 
ing all parts of the State. From the above date till January 27th, 
1836, everybody talked about railroads, pikes, and canals. 

At the latter date Governor Noah Noble signed what is known 
as the Mammoth Internal Improvement Bill. This bill provided 
that the State should build canals from Lawrenceburg to Rich- 
mond ; from Peru by way of Indianapolis and down White river 
to Evansville ; from Fort Wayne to Lake Michigan ; for a railroad 
from Madison to Indianapolis; for pikes from New Albany to La- 
fayette ; and from New Albany to Vincennes. The following selec- 
tion is part of a speech made in the State Senate. They were dis- 
cussing the question whether the State should build canals or rail- 
roads. 

118. Canals versus Railroads 
(From Indiana .foinual, March 20. 1827; speech hy Sktu M. Leave^"- 

WORTII.) 

It only remains now for me to describe to this commit- 
tee what kind of internal improvements would best suit the 
local situation of this State. In my opinion there are but 
two kinds, to wit : railroads and canals. I will first ex- 
amine the principles of making canals, and how they are 
navigated. Canals can only be made where sufficient water 
can be found upon the height of land between the two 
points you wish to connect by canals, that is the first requi- 
site ; after it is ascertained that Avater can be had, then the 
cost can be calculated, which will be in proportion to the 
ground passed over, lockage, etc. ; the latter costs about 
1,000 dollars per foot ; the New York Canal upon an aver- 
age cost about 21,000 dollars per mile ; the Ohio Canal now 

(357) 



358 Readings in Indiana History 

making is calculated to cost considerably less. However, 
all canals cost more or less, according to the earth to be ex- 
cavated and the surface to be passed over. After a canal 
is made and in operation it is usually navigated with boats 
of the burthen of about 30 tons, towed by horses at the ve- 
locity of two miles an hour, and a man and a boy attend the 
boats ; this velocity is found to be the most expedient. 

Now I will examine the railroad system of internal im- 
provements, which usually cost from one-third to one-half 
less than the canal. Railroads have been in use for a long- 
time in England, and animal power has been usually used 
to propel wagons upon them, until within a few years past. 
Now steam power is used to propel wagons upon the rail- 
roads, by means of a self -moving machine, called a locomo- 
tive engine, which is placed upon a wagon, and moves the 
wagon on which it is placed, and likewise a train of wagons 
attached to it, which contain the lading. It is capable of 
moving at the rate of eight or nine miles an hour, with 
ninety tons of lading. Steam power to propel wagons is a 
new principle ; it far exceeds all power ever before used for 
that purpose. It acts with the same constancy as gravita- 
tion; the principal resistance you meet with is the friction 
of the axletree. 

Eailroads may be made upon uneven ground, may pass 
through a hilly country as well as a level one. There is no 
limit to the business that can be done upon them. They 
may be covered with wagons, all moving with one uniform 
velocity. They are not stopped with ice in winter or drought 
in summer, neither do they, like canals, render their vicin- 
ity humid and sickly in the summer season ; they are not so 
subject to be out of repair as a canal. Freshets never in- 
jure or destroy them. In England they are constructed for 
one-third or one-half the expense of a canal; a man and a 
boy manage the locomotive engine, which moves ninety tons 
of cargo with the velocity of nine miles an hour. The cost 
of a railroad in this country would probably be something- 
more than in England, as iron forms a considerable part of 
the materials with which they are constructed, iron being 
a little higher in America than in England. 



Internal Improvements 359 

119. Opening of the Wabash and Erie Canal 

(From the Indiana Jotir-nal, July 31, 1835.) 

Canal navigation in Indiana has now fairly com- 
menced. Tliirty-two miles of the Wabash and Erie canal, 
extending from the dam across the Little St. Joseph river to 
Huntington on the Wabash are now completed and boats are 
regularly running thereon. This interesting event was cel- 
ebrated in a becoming manner on the 4th inst. On the 2nd 
three boats left this place for Huntington for the purpose 
of bringing up such citizens of the lower end of the line as 
might wish to attend the celebration. The arrival of these 
boats in Huntington was hailed with the liveliest demonstra- 
tions of joy. 

The next day the boats returned to Ft. Wayne, and were 
met and saluted by a detachment of militia, under the com- 
mand of Capt. Rudisil ; the salutes were returned by Capt. 
Fate 's artillery, who came from Huntington with the boats. 
On the morning of the 4th a procession was formed in front 
of the Washington Hall and proceeded to the canal, where 
they embarked on the boats prepared for the occasion, and 
took a trip to the Feeder dam, seven miles distant. No less 
than 500 individuals, including a large portion of the fair 
sex, were present on the occasion. Among the guests were 
Gen. Tipton, of the U. S. Senate, and Col. Stansberry, of 
the U. S. Topographical Engineers, who was one of the 
party who first surveyed the route of the canal. Governor 
Noble was prevented by ill health from attending. Gov- 
ernor Lucas, of Ohio, was invited, but was prevented by the 
pressure of official business from being present. 

The company landed at the dam, where salutes were 
fired by the military and some toasts were given. On the 
health of the canal commissioners being drunk, D. Burr, 
Esq., returned thanks, and in a short but animated address 
depicted the difficulties which our infant State had encoun- 
tered in the commencement of a work of such magnitude as 
this canal, and the advantages that might reasonably be an- 
ticipated from its speedy completion. Gen. Tipton being 
called upon, delivered a short speech, in which he contrasted 
the present appearance of this section of country — where 



360 Readings in Indiana History 

cultivated farms and cheerful villages meet the eye in every 
direction — with what it was at the time the canal was first 
contemplated, when the whole country from Lake Erie to 
the Wabash was one unbroken wilderness. 

The company then returned to Ft. Wayne, where the 
Declaration of Independence was read by L. B. Wilson, and 
an oration delivered by Hon. H. McCulloch. A large com- 
pany afterwards partook of a public dinner prepared for 
the occasion. The day was uncommonly fine, and nothing 
happened to disturb the harmony and good feeling which 
were manifested by all. 

120. Labor Troubles on the Canal 

(From Indiana Journal, July 31, 1835.) 

The canals were laid off into sections about one mile long and 
let to the lowest bidder. The digg-ing- was done with simple tools, 
such as plows, scrapers, shovels and wheelbarrows. The diggers 
were nearly all Irish, who had a proverbial fondness for fighting. 
There were two factions of them, known as "Corkers" and "Far- 
downers" from Kerry. All their spare time was put in in fighting. 
They lived in little huts along the works and the whole scene had 
somewhat the appearance of a camp. As soon as an Irishman had 
earned a little money he bought land and became a landlord. Se- 
lections like the following were about as common then in the news- 
papers as accounts of ' ' strikes ' ' are now. 

There have been some disturbances among the Irish 
laborers on the Wabash and Erie Canal, which but for the 
prompt and energetic measures resorted to for their sup- 
pression, would have resulted in a sanguinary conflict be- 
tween the tw^o factions into which the Irish are divided. 
For some time past the ' ' Corkonians ' ' have been the strong- 
er party on the canal line, and have embraced every oppor- 
tunity of maltreating such of the "Fardowms" as might fall 
into their hands. Nor have our own citizens at all times 
been safe from the attacks of these ruffians. The "Far- 
downs" having lately received great accessions to their 
numbers, resolved upon driving their opponents from the 
canal, and preparations for the contest were made by both 
parties. 



Internal Improvements 361 

The Irish were observed by the citizens to be in the habit 
of nightly assembling in the secluded places in the woods ; 
and all who could in any way procure arms were providing 
themselves with them. Three kegs of powder were forcibly 
taken from a wagon on the highway ; the houses of some of 
the citizens were entered and the owners compelled to give 
up their guns ; and the lives of others were threatened who 
refused to give up their arms. Several outrages were com- 
mitted by these deluded ruffians upon each other; and Mr. 
Brady, a canal contractor, was fired at, but fortunately 
without effect, by a wretch named Sullivan, who, we are in- 
formed, took a prominent part in the disturbances in Mary- 
land last year, and is also deeply implicated in the murders 
connnitted at Williamsburgh, Pa., four years ago. 

The contest was intended to have taken place on the 12th 
inst., the anniversary of the battle of the Boyne. ( )n the 10th 
the "Corkonians" assembled at Lagro, to the number of 
about three hundred, most of whom were armed; at the 
same time about two hundred and fifty armed ' ' Fardowns ' ' 
advanced to Wabash, seven miles from Lagro, on their way 
to attack their adversaries. D. Burr, Esq., canal commis- 
sioner, and some other citizens of the neighborhood, suc- 
ceeded in inducing the two parties to suspend their intended 
fight for two days, in order to give them an opportunity of 
making some amicable arrangement. In the meantime ex- 
presses were sent to Fort Wayne and Logansport, request- 
ing assistance to suppress the disturbances and protect the 
citizens from the dangers to which they would be exposed 
if the two parties should come in contact. 

The express arrived here (Fort Wayne) on Saturday 
the 11th, and the appeal was promptly responded to by our 
citizens. The drum beat to arms, and in two hours a com- 
pany of sixty-three men, well armed and furnished with am- 
munition and provisions, were on their march for the scene 
of action. Col. J. Spencer was elected to command the ex- 
pedition; Adam Hull was elected first lieutenant, Samuel 
Edsell second lieutenant, and H. Rudisil ensign. The com- 
pany embarked in a canal boat and arrived at Huntington 
about midnight; next morning they marched forward on 



362 Readings in Indiana History 

their route, reinforced by a company from Huntington, un- 
der the command of Capt. Murray. 

On hearing of the arrival of the volunteers, the Irish dis- 
persed into the woods, and the next day most of them re- 
turned to their work, fully satisfied that they could not 
trample on the laws of the State with impunity, and that if 
they attempted to proceed any further in their mad career 
they would inevitably meet with the punishment due to such 
lawless proceedings. 

121. Railroad Celebration at Shelby ville 

(From Indiana Journal, July 19, 1834. Copied from Shelby ville Transcript.) 

On the 4th inst. at 10 o'clock A. M. a procession was 
formed at the court house and marched to the western ter- 
minus of the railroad in the following order : 1st, Capt. 
Conover 's Light Infantry Company, preceded by the music ; 
2nd, twenty-five little girls dressed in white trimmed with 
blue, bearing the banners of the several States and the lib- 
erty cap; 3d, the Revolutionary soldiers; 4th, the orator, 
reader of the Declaration, and chaplain, followed by the 
committee of arrangements and the citizens generally. 
After the oration was delivered an excellent dinner was 
served up by Mr. Jeremiah Bennett on the spot. The day 
being fine, no place could, under existing circumstances, 
have been more suitable. Immediately at the western end 
of the road .is a beautiful grove of sugar trees and beech, 
which afford, in the warmest day, a cool and refreshing 
shade. 

The festivities and proceedings of the day were marked 
throughout with civil conduct and good feeling. The car 
was kept constantly running and the greatest eagerness 
evinced to ride. Such was the success of the experiment 
that those who were before doubtful were confirmed in the 
utility and practicability of the work. After the festivities 
of the day were closed a portion of the company repaired 
to Mr. Joseph M. Simms' and enjoyed themselves in an 
agreeable dance. 



CHAPTER XXIII 

BANKS AND BANKING 

In 1814 the territorial legislature at Corydou chartered two 
banks, one at Vincennes, the other at Madison. Before the former 
had been organized it became the First State Bank, with fifteen 
branches. Four of these branches had been opened by 1821, when 
the bank failed. The one at Madison, the old Farmers and Me- 
chanics, had an honorable career, but the Second Bank of the United 
States forced it to quit business. From that time till 1834, there 
were no chartered banks in the State. As soon as it was ascer- 
tained that Jackson had vetoed the bill to recharter the Second 
Bank of the United States, there began an agitation for a State 
Bank with branches. This was chartered in 1834 and went into 
operation the same year. It had branches at Indianapolis, Law- 
renceburg, Richmond, Madison, New Albany, Evansville, Vin- 
cennes, Bedford, Terre Haute, Lafayette, Fort Wayne, South Bend, 
and Michigan City. Mr. Lanier was president of the Madison 
branch and one of the best bankers this State has produced. 

122. The State Bank of Indiana 

(From Sketch of the Life of J. F. D. Lanier, by J. F. D. Lanier [1870], 

pp. 13-15.) 

In 1833, upon the chartering of the State Bank of In- 
diana, I retired from the practice of the law and took a 
prominent share in the management of that institution. I 
held a larger amount of the stock first subscribed than any 
other individual. This bank consisted of a central bank, 
located at Indianapolis, with ten branches in as many lead- 
ing towns of the State. I was the first president of the Mad- 
ison branch. The Central Bank was not one of discount or 
issue. Its functions were a general supervision of the 
branches, being a board of control, of which Mr. McCul- 
loch, afterward Secretary of the Treasury of the United 
States, and myself were among the leading members. 

Notwithstanding the managers of the bank, at the time 
it went into operation, were wholly without training or ex- 

(363) 



364 Readings in Indiana History 

perience in sucli matters, many of them never having been 
inside of such an institution, it proved a model of success, 
and consequently most beneficial to all the interests of the 
State. The capital was almost wholly borrowed from 
abroad, and through the credit of the State, which took 
$1,000,000 of the stock and loaned its credit to individual 
stockholders to the extent of one-half of the stock subscribed 
by them, taking as security therefor real estate at one-half 
of its unimproved value. The credit of the State was high, 
its five per cent, bonds selling at a premium averaging from 
twelve to fifteen per cent. 

It may seem incredible that a bank, based almost wholly 
upon capital borrowed, and that through the instrumental- 
ity of the State, should have proved such a success. It 
would appear to have been almost inevitable that in a coun- 
try lacking in commercial training, where the demand for 
capital is always excessive, where the managers of trust 
funds have every inducement to make a reckless use of 
them, and where, among the great mass, there is very little 
idea of the importance of and value of promptness in the 
payment of obligations, that the bank, if it did not lose its 
capital, would soon find it converted into various kinds of 
property taken in payment of loans, or in the overdue notes 
of its borrowers. 

The bank commenced business at one of the most critical 
periods of the history of the country — at the very beginning 
of that great era of speculation which nearly bankrupted 
the whole nation, and which culminated in the terrible catas- 
trophe of 1837. At this disastrous crisis nearly every bank 
in the Western and Southw^estern States failed, with the 
exception of that of Indiana. A very large number of those 
of the Eastern States were totally ruined. It would seem 
to have been almost impossible that the Bank of Indiana, 
then one of the newest of the Western States, should not 
have become involved in the general catastrophe. So far 
from this being the case, the bank not only paid dividends 
averaging from twelve to fourteen per cent, annually, but 
returned to its stockholders nearly double the original in- 



Banks apxd Banking 365 

vestment when it was wound up at the expiration of its 
charter in 1854. For the $1,000,000 invested by it in this 
institution the State received, in profits alone, fully $3,500,- 
000. These profits now constitute the school fund of the 
State, the increase of which, being invested in the State in- 
debtedness, is rapidly converting the whole of it into an ir- 
redeemable fund to be devoted to educational purposes. The 
bank was the only one of the numerous enterprises in which 
the State embarked that did not prove an almost total 
failure. 

As we had always intended to keep our banks in position 
to meet any emergency that might arise, we had not in the 
least anticipated the general suspension in 1837 in the East- 
ern States till that event happened. Our Board of Control 
was then in session at Indianapolis. We were at the time 
the depository of $1,500,000 of Government funds. I was 
instructed by the board to proceed immediately to Washing- 
ton to represent our condition, and to confer with the Secre- 
tary of the Treasury as to what we, in the emergency, should 
do. I took with me $80,000 in gold. I went up the Ohio 
river in a steamboat to Wheeling, and thence by stage char- 
tered for the purpose, alone across the mountains to Fred- 
erick, at that time the western terminus of the Baltimore 
and Ohio Railroad, and 61 miles west of Baltimore. I suf- 
fered not a little anxiety on account of the treasure I car- 
ried more than 300 miles through a wild and comparatively 
uninhabited region, and was not a little relieved on reaching 
the safe conduct of a railroad. On arriving at Washington 
I obtained an interview with the Secretary of the Treasury, 
the Hon. Levi Woodbury, explained to him the position and 
the entire solvency of our bank, and delivered to him the 
gold I had brought with me, in part payment of our bal- 
ances. 

He received me with great cordiality, and said that our 
bank was the only one that had offered to pay any portion 
of its indebtedness in specie. We were allowed to retain 
the Government deposits till they were drawn in the regu- 
lar disbursements. 



366 Readings in Indiana History : 

123. Difticiilty in Exchanging Bills 

(From Indianapolis Daily Journal, May 10, 1861.) 

The following extract was copied by the Journal from a news- 
paper in Cincinnati, where the incident occurred : 

William A. Thompson, Esq., of Prosperity, Madison 
County, Indiana, an ex-member of the Indiana Legislature, 
was yesterday made the victim of a confidence game, where- 
by he was left minus $250, thus : Mr. Thompson met a man 
at the Gibson House of whom he inquired whether Ken- 
tuekj^ money was current here. He received a reply in the 
negative. The interrogated individual, who said that his 
name was Thomas — what a similarity ! — asked the Hoosier 
how much Kentucky money he had in his possession. Mr. 
Thompson replied that he had $250 of it. It was then pro- 
posed by Mr. Thomas that the ex-legislator should accom- 
pany him to ''his place of business," which he said was 
near the corner of Fifth and Walnut streets, there to ex- 
change his monev for current funds. 

They started and had scarcely got to the corner of Fifth 
street when Thomas met an individual whom he introduced 
as his partner. The "partner" was asked to exchange the 
Kentucky notes, and said he could do so. Thompson passed 
the $250 into the hands of the newly made friend, who de- 
sired just to step upstairs, and come down immediately with 
a similar amount of Ohio funds. He went up, and has not 
come down yet. Mr. Thomas went up shortly after to see 
what was detaining him, and he has not yet returned. 

Mr. Thompson went home convinced that he had been 
swindled. 



CHAPTER XXIV 

POLITICAL PARTIES 

There were no well organized political parties in Indiana till 
1824. The friends of Jackson met in State Convention at Salem in 
1824 and organized a party, adopted a platform, and nominated 
candidates. These friends of Jackson were opposed to the men who 
had always held the State offices. They found it very difficult to 
get together on account of distance and bad roads. The following 
selection shows how they organized and conducted a convention. It 
is pretty well proved that the convention of 1824 at Salem was the 
first State political convention ever held. 

124. A Jackson Convention 

(From the Indiana Journal, January 17, 1828.) 

Senate Chamber, Indianapolis, Jan. 9, 1828. 

The convention met pursuant to adjournment, and after 
the reading of the Journals, the following gentlemen pro- 
duced their credentials and took their seats as members of 
this convention, viz : 

Putnam, Lewis H. Sands and David Lindley; Clark, 
Alexander F. Morrison ; Washington, Henry S. Handy. On 
motion of Mr. Lemon: Resolved, That the committee ap- 
pointed to prepare an address to the people of Indiana be 
instructed respectfully to request the citizens of their coun- 
ties to hold either county or township meetings (as may 
best suit them), to appoint committees of correspondence 
and vigilance, to correspond with the State Central Com- 
mittee, and adopt such other measures as will promote the 
election of Andrew Jackson to the Presidency of the United 
States. 

Resolved, That this convention recommend John C. Cal- 
houn to the people of Indiana as a fit person for Vice-Presi- 
dent of the United States. 

On motion the convention adjourned to meet at 6 o'clock 
to-morrow evening in the Senate Chamber. 

(367) 



368 Readings in Indiana History 

Senate Chamber, Jan. 10. 

The convention met pursuant to adjournment, and after 
the reading of the journals proceeded to business. Mr. 
Clendenin made the following report : 

Mr. President — Your committee appointed to form an 
electoral ticket for this State for Andrew Jackson for Pres- 
ident of the United States have performed their duty, and 
now beg leave to recommend to this convention the follow- 
ing gentlemen as suitable persons to constitute that ticket, 
to wit : 

For the First Judicial Circuit, Benjamin V. Beckes, of 
Knox County. For the Second Judicial Circuit, Jesse B. 
Durham, of Jackson County. For the Third Judicial Cir- 
cuit, Ross Smiley, of Union County. For the Fourth Judi- 
cial Circuit, Ratliff Boon, of Warrick County. For the 
Fifth Judicial Circuit, William Lowe, of Monroe county. 
All of which is respectfully submitted for the consideration 
and adoption of this convention. Which resolution was 
concurred in by the unanimous consent of the Convention. 

Resolved, That the President of this Convention be and 
he is hereby instructed to transmit copies of the address of 
this convention to the citizens of Indiana ; to each of our 
Senators and Representatives in Congress, and also to the 
editors of the United States Telefjraph, the Louisville Pub- 
lic Advertiser, National Republican at Cincinnati, Argus at 
Frankfort, Ky., and such other newspapers in the Western 
country as are friendly to the election of Andrew Jackson 
to the Presidency of the United States, as he may deem 
proper, with a request to them to publish the same in their 
papers ; which was adopted. 

Resolved, That Henry S. Handy, editor of the Annota- 
tor, at Salem, be requested to draw up and publish a pre- 
amble with the resolutions and proceedings of this conven- 
tion; which was adopted. The following report was then 
submitted : 

Mr. President — The committee appointed to examine 
and report what means may be necessary to be adopted for 
the purpose of advancing the election of Andrew Jackson 



Political Parties 369 

to the Presidency of the United States, report, that they 
have had the same under consideration and recommend the 
adoption of the following resolutions : 

Resolved, That R. C. Newland, Eli W. Malott, John 
M'Mahan and Henry S. Handy, of Washington county; 
Gen. John Carr, of Clark county; William Hoggatt, of 
Orange county ; William Marshall, of Jackson county ; John 
Milroy, of Lawrence county; Nelson Lodge, of Jefferson 
county; Elihu Stout, of Knox county; William C. Keen, of 
Switzerland county ; Jacob B. Lowe, of Monroe county ; 
David V. Culley, of Dearborn county; Thomas Posey, of 
Harrison county, be appointed a committee of general sup- 
erintendence, (any five of whom shall have authority to 
act) whose duty it shall be to fill any vacancy in the elec- 
toral ticket; to announce the person who may be selected 
by the friends of Andrew Jackson in the different States 
as the candidate for the Vice Presidency; to adopt such 
measures as may seem to them necessary and proper, to 
secure the united co-operation of all the friends of the elec- 
tion of Andrew Jackson, throughout the State, in the very 
support of the principles for which we contend, to insure 
the circulation of correct intelligence in every county among 
our friends, and to provide the funds necessary to defray 
such expenses as may be incurred, and to adopt and recom- 
mend all such measures as to them may appear expedient, 
and that the members of the committee hold their first meet- 
ing on the 22nd day of February next, in Salem. 

Resolved, That the committee is hereby authorized to 
fill vacancies and add to their number if necessary, for the 
purpose of promoting the main object in view. 

Which report was concurred in by the unanimous con- 
sent of the convention. 

Resolved, That the friends of the election of Andrew 
Jackson be requested to organize committees of correspond- 
ence in their counties, and, as far as possible, committees of 
vigilance in their respective townships, and to transmit the 
names of such gentlemen composing such committees to 
the committee of general superintendence at Salem; and 

24—1643 



370 Readings in Indiana History 

that the committee of general superintendence be requested 
individually to use their exertions to give effect to this reso- 
lution. 

Mr. [Samuel] Judah for the committee appointed to 
prepare the address, reported as follows : 

The committee appointed to prepare an address to the 
people of Indiana on behalf of this convention report, that 
they have had the same under consideration and are now 
ready to report; which report was read and concurred in. 

On motion of Mr. S. Milroy, Resolved, That the thanks 
of this Convention, assembled at Indianapolis, on the 8th 
of January inst., to promote the election of Gen. Andrew 
Jackson to the Presidency of the United States, be and the 
same are herebj^ most cordially tendered to the General 
Assembly of the state of Indiana, for the use so politely 
tendered to the convention, of the Senate Chamber and the 
Representative Hall, while holding their session, and that 
the secretaries of this convention be requested to present 
a copy of this resolution to the President of the Senate and 
the Speaker of the House of Eepresentatives. 

On motion of Mr. Sands, Resolved, That the President 
of this Convention be instructed to invite Gen. Andrew 
Jackson to visit the State of Indiana on the 4tli of July 
next, and that the central committee be requested to act as 
a committee of arrangement to receive him at Salem in the 
county of Washington, in case of his accepting the invita- 
tion. 

On motion of Mr. Sands, Resolved, That the delegates 
composing this convention will act in concert with the com- 
mittees of correspondence, appointed in their respective 
counties. On motion, the Convention adjourned sine die. 

Israel T. Canby, P. C. 
B. V. Beckes, V. P. C. 



Political Parties 371 

125. Perils of a Congressional Campaign 

(From Early Indiana Trials and Sketches, by O. H. Smith [1857], 

pp. 80-82.) 

There was fun in those days. We had no parties then, 
and there was some life in a contest — ^very different from 
after times, when the candidates had to be engrafted into 
the party stock, and drew all their life and strength from 
the party to which they belonged. 

On one occasion in after years I was speaking at a bat- 
talion muster in Eipley county, and had spoken over two 
hours. I noticed an old man leaning against the tree in 
front of me. 

As I closed he roared out : ' ' Mr. Smith, you have made 
one of the best speeches I ever heard, I agree with all you 
have said. Will you answer me one question before you 
leave the stand?" 

'^Most certainly." 

''Will you vote for General Jackson?" 

"No, sir, I shall vote for Henry Clay." 

"Then you can't get my vote." 

The question was between Jackson and Clay, and not 
between myself and competitor as to who should go to Con- 
gress, with the old man. The contest grew warm, and 
more and more doubtful. My stock was rising, and with it 
my spirits. My district covered one-third of the State. 

I had not, as yet, visited the county of Allen, some hun- 
dred miles north of Randolph. There were no roads, noth- 
ing but Indian paths, to travel at that day through the 
wilderness. In the early part of May I turned the head of 
my pony north for Fort Wayne. The streams were high 
and the path for miles under water in places. I rode in 
that campaign a small brown Indian pony, a good swimmer, 
a fine pacer, and a fine traveler. 

The first day after I left the settlements at the Missis- 
sinewa, I reached the Indian station at Francis Grodfroy's. 
The chief was from home, but one of his wives came out at 
an opening in the picketing, and pointed toward Fort 
Wayne; the chief was there. She could not speak a word 



372 Readings in Indiana History 

of English. I pointed to the stable, then to my horse, then 
to my mouth, then laid my head on my hands, shut my eyes, 
and conmienced snoring. She seized the reins of my 
bridle ; I dismounted and passed through the pickets into the 
house. My faithful pony was fed. Night came on at 
length ; supper was announced, by motions ; corn bread, ven- 
ison, and sassafras tea, a bear skin on the floor for a bed, 
and sound sleeping followed. 

Breakfast of the same over, and I was about starting 
alone, when there came up an Indian that could speak a 
little broken English. I employed him to act as a guide 
for two dollars for a day to get me over the Salamonia and 
the Wabash rivers. We were soon on our horses, and off 
went my guide at full speed on his pony, and was soon out 
of sight. I overtook him, however, at the Salamonia. In 
we went, he leading. The ponies swam beautifully; and 
away we started for the Wabash. The path wound around 
the ridges until the river came full in sight. It was high, 
clear over the bank, and the current very rapid. The sun 
was some three hours high, the day warm and not unpleas- 
ant. I had neglected to provide any food, or even a knife 
for defense. The moment we reached the river the Indian 
jumped down, peeled some bark from a hickory sapling, 
and spancelled^ the fore legs of the ponies. I sat down on 
the bank. 

The Indian was out of sight in a moment, in the woods, 
and I saw nothing of him for an hour, when he returned 
with the bark of a hickory tree, about twelve feet long and 
three feet in diameter. A fire was soon made. The bark 
was metamorphosed into a round-bottomed Indian canoe. 
The sun was about an hour high. The canoe was launched ; 
my saddle, saddle-bag, and blanket placed in one end and 
I got into the other. With my w^eight the edges were about 
an inch above water. I took the paddle, and, by using the 
current, landed safely on the other shore. The Indian 
swam the horse over, and held up two fingers. I paid him 



1 Spancel, to tie the legs of an animal to keep it from straying or kicking. 



Political Parties 373 

the two dollars; lie started back, and I mounted the pony 
and striking the path went off at half-speed. 

It was after twilight, when I came to a large lake, direct- 
ly in my path. Fearing to go in, I turned the pony and 
rode out into the woods, to the top of a beech tree that had 
blown down some time before. Dismounting, I tied the 
pony to the brush of the tree, took off the saddle-bags and 
blanket, and laid down, without anything to eat, and very 
tired. In a few moments I heard the howling of wolves in 
every direction, sometimes very close to me. The last 
thing I heard, as I fell asleep, was an old wolf barking some 
twenty feet from me. I slept soundly through the night, 
and when I awoke the sun was full in my face. At dinner 
I was at the hotel table in Fort Wayne, with an excellent 
appetite, having eaten nothing from early breakfast the 
day before. I made a speech that day from the porch of 
the hotel, and returned directly home. The election came 
on, and I received just ten votes in the county of Allen, to 
reward me for my perilous trip, while my majority in the 
district was over fifteen hundred. 



126. Convention of the People on the Tij>pecanoe Battle Ground 

(A Whig Rally) 

(From the Semi-Weekly Journal, Indianapolis, June 9, 18i0.) 
The presidential campai^ of 1840 presented many picturesque 
features. It has gone down in history as "the log cabin and hard 
cider campaign. ' ' Great popular rallies, such as the one described 
below, were held in every part of the State. The principal fea- 
ture was the parade with floats representing incidents in the life of 
General Harrison. 

PROCESSION 



A brig, the ^'Constitution" from Michigan City, full 
rigged, her broad pennant inscribed "Harrison and Tyler" 
floating in the breeze, — drawn by six gray horses. 



Banner — ''A voice from the North! Martin, beware. 
Music — Logansport Band 



374 



Readings in Indiana History 



Soldiers op the Revolution. 
In a canoe from Tippecanoe county, drawn by six 
horses. On each side of the canoe, was seen the National 
and State tickets. An old soldier bore the National flag — 



i 











HARRISOl 



TTE-ER 



HAVING OiIEI.M,NtO Tu HOLD A CO^^VtNTION AT LOG-NSPORT, CASS CcUNTY OH THE 



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Rally poster in 1840. 



another the portrait of Harrison with the inscription "Log 
Cabin and Hard Cider Candidate/' Another banner: 
"Harrison and Tyler" "No change can he for the worse." 

SoLDiEEs OF Tippecanoe 
With the flag of Spencer ^s company, in a canoe from 
Randolph Township, Tippecanoe county, drawn by four 



Political Parties 375 

grays. On either side of the canoe the inscription "The log 
cabin boys of Randolph will paddle their canoe for Harri- 
son and Tyler." The National flag, and a banner with a 
view of the White House — "Old Tip's Residence in 1841." 
The Dayton Blues, a fine military company from Tippe- 
canoe county, with music. 

Soldiers of the Late War 

In a canoe from Sheffield Township, Tippecanoe county, 
surmounted by a cabin displaying the buck-horns and other 
emblems of the hunter's lodge, and a barrel of "hard cider." 
A Transparency, brought by the Sheffield township Tippe- 
canoe Club, inscribed: 

1st side. "Indiana will cherish in manhood the defend- 
er of her infancy" 

"Eternal vigilance is the price of Liberty" 
"Union of the Whigs for the sake of the Union" 
"Retrenchment to reduce, not to increase" 
2d side. "Measures not men" 

'' Choose ye this day whom ye luill have to serve you" 
"Harrison and Tyler — Bigger and Hall" 
"No reduction of wages" 
3d. side. "No standing army of 200,000 men" 
"The Hoosier boys are always ready to do their oiun 
voting as well as their oivn fighting" 

"Log Cabin freedom is better than White House slav- 
ery" 

Next in the procession followed the bearers of the ban- 
ner presented to the delegation from Indiana to the Balti- 
more Convention, "Indiana will cherish in manhood the 
defender of her infancy.'' 

The fine boat "Plough-Boy'' from Attica, Fountain 
county, drawn by four horses. One of the banners of the 
Fountain delegation: "Gen. William Henry Harrison. 
The generous husbandman; gallant hero; venerable 
sage and illustrious statesman." On the reverse, "To 
preserve our liberties we must do our own voting as well as 
our own fighting. 



f f 



376 Readings in Indiana History 

Rifle Rangeks. 
A splendid military company from Evansville with a 
beautiful flag presented by the ladies of that place. The 
company preceded by a fine band of music, and the captain 
bearing the sword found grasped in the hand of the la- 
mented Owen when he fell upon the battle field, the marks 
of a tomahawk still distinctly visible. 



PART V. NATIONAL QUESTIONS, 1844-1876 



CHAPTER XXV 

127. Introductory Sketch 

The election of 1840 brought an end to what has been called the 
personal period of Indiana politics. During and after the political 
campaign of 1844 national questions decided State elections. The 
most important of these questions was slavery. This is discussed in 
the next chapter. 

Besides slavery there was the question of the Public Lands. A 
large number of voters in the West favored the homestead plan 
under which actual settlers would be given one hundred and sixty 
acres. Another large class favored giving the public lands to com- 
panies who would build railroads or canals, the land-grant policy. 

The question of territorial expansion became one of great inter- 
est in Indiana. IMany Hoosiers joined the throngs that went to 
Oregon and California. Others went to Texas and helped urge the 
annexation of that country. Hardly a family in the State but had 
some relative or old neighbor in these distant countries. Their 
letters to their Indiana friends made the young men, especially, 
very much in favor of bringing Oregon, California, and Texas into 
the Union. 

There came over the country at this time a great change in the 
feeling of the people toward the unfortunate members of society. 
Before this time people in general looked upon the feeble-minded, 
blind, insane, and other afHicted persons as little better than ani- 
mals. Especially was this so in regard to prisoners. Beginning 
about this period Indiana, as well as the other States, began to 
build asylums for the helpless, schools for the blind, deaf, and 
feeble-minded. Reformatories and penitentiaries for the criminals 
were erected. 

In politics the State politician gave way to the national politi- 
cian. The State platforms M^ere made like the national. Ambitious 
young men were eager to go as delegates to the national conventions 
and see and hear the great statesmen of the East and South. They 
came back to Indiana and talked about national questions such as 

(377) 



37^ Readings in Indiana History 

tariff, slavery, Oregon, foreign affairs, and the work of Congress 
instead of strictly Indiana affairs as they had formerly done. 

In this period, 1844-1860, railroads, telegraphs, daily papers, 
travelers in ever-increasing numbers, were bringing in the light of 
the outside world. These influences naturally made the Hoosiers 
take more interest in the outside world. Travelers from Indiana, 
instead of going almost entirely to New Orleans, now went in large 
numbers to New York, Washington, and even Boston. 

The Indiana colleges were now well on their feet and were fast 
becoming centers of learning. The State Seminary, founded in 
1820, had in 1828 become the Indiana College and in 1838 the 
Indiana University. All these influences were rapidly lifting the 
Hoosier State out of its old narrowness and provincialism. 



CHAPTER XXVI 
THE SLAVERY CONTEST IN INDIANA 

Previous to the political campaign of 1844 the elections in Indi- 
ana turned on State issues. The personal popularity of the candi- 
dates, their attitude on canals, pikes, railroads, schools, and 
churches were the things discussed by the voters. The Texas ques- 
tion secured the interest of the Indiana voters. The Mexican War 
followed. 

Then came the great slavery struggle. The fugitive slave law 
of 1850 made the citizens of the State slave-catchers and they 
refused to serve. Runaway slaves in ever-increasing numbers came 
over the Ohio and raced across the State to Canada and freedom. 
Sight of these unfortunate wretches first aroused pity for them 
and next a warlike anger against the authors of their misfortunes, 
the slave owners of the South. There were also in the State 
numbers of unprincipled villains who made money by kidnapping 
the refugee slaves and selling them south again. Every neighbor- 
hood in the State was visited by the runaway slaves and their 
pursuers. The citizens in general aided the slaves to make their 
escape. That threw them into open hostility to the owners in 
pursuit. 

As a result the Indianians soon learned to look upon slave 
owners as a cruel heartless class, while the planters from the 
South came to regard the Northern men as a lawless, thieving 
class with much the same feeling as we regard horse thieves. 
The real cause of the Civil War is to be found in these experiences 
with runaway slaves. 

128. Slave Indentures in Indiana Ten-itory 

(From .4 Pioneer History of Indiana, by Col. William M. Cockrum [1907], 

pp. 145-146.) 

(An Indenture Contract) 

May 26, 1815. 

To ALL WHOM IT MAY CONCERN : 

This is to certify that this day I have set free and by 
these presents do give emancipation papers to my faithful 

(379) 



380 Readings in Indiana History 

servant Thomas Agnew, and from this date he shall be 
known as a free man. Given under my hand and seal. 

Thomas Truman, 
(seal) Witness, Joseph Forth. 

This is to certify that I have this day received from 
my former master my emancipation papers. As I don't 
know any other home but the one I have always lived at, I 
do hereby indenture myself to my master, John Truman, 
for thirty years from this date, he agreeing to feed and 
clothe me during that time. Thomas Agnew. 

X his mark. 

May 26, 1815. 

(Story of Agnew 's Indenture) 

Just before the State of Indiana was admitted into the 
Union my father moved here from a slave State and brought 
with him, Tom, whom he had owned from his infancy. He 
had no thought that there would be any trouble about it 
as Tom was a fixture in the family. A friend one day told 
father that parties were preparing to bring habeas corpus 
proceedings and emancipate Tom. The only thing my 
father could do was to emancipate him and have him inden- 
ture his time after he was a freeman. This was done as 
shown above and Tom went faithfully on with his work as 
before. This was nearly twenty years before I was born. 

The good old faithful slave worked on the farm with my 
father for nearly twenty-seven years after the indenture 
was made, when my father sickened and died. Tom then 
kept on working with my brother the same as before. 

On settling up the estate it was found that my father was 
more in debt than had been supposed and there would be 
little left. 

A cousin of my father who lived in a slave State where 
he had moved from, held a mortgage on our farm. This 
cousin was a ' ' Shylock ' ' and demanded the last cent, which 
would take everything, farm and all, at a forced sale. He, 
however, made this proposition to my mother: if Tom 
would go home with him and work for him as long as he 



The Slavery Contest 381 

lived, he would release the mortgage. This my mother 
would not consent to as Tom had less than three years of his 
indenture term to put in and he was so faithful to the family 
that she would not listen to such a transaction. 

Tom had learned the condition of things, as nothing was 
kept from him, and he had planned with this cousin to give 
his life service for the family 's comfort. He would not con- 
sent to anything but that he must go and save the family 
from want. The agreement was made, the mortgage was 
cancelled and Tom went away to the home of his new mas- 
ter, now a slave in fact. 

Some time after this an uncle of my mother died and 
left her several thousand dollars. This made us independ- 
ent and my mother's first thoughts were of Tom. She went 
to hunt for him and she found him working faithfully. She 
went to his master, told him that she wanted to take Tom 
back with her and that she was prepared to pay him in full 
for his mortgage, interest and trouble. This he refused, 
saying that Tom was priceless and that no money could buy 
him. She tried in every way to have him agree to let Tom 
go with her but he was obdurate. Tom told her not to 
mind him, that there would be but a few years more for him 
to serve as age was creeping on and he would soon be in 
another country where no trouble would come. 

My mother was a nervy woman and she determined to 
liberate Tom if she could. She was advised to go to Evans- 
ville and see a lawyer by the name of Conrad Baker [later 
governor]. My mother explained to Mr. Baker Tom's sit- 
uation and gave him a statement of the evidence that could 
be obtained. She also gave him the emancipation and in- 
denture papers. Mr. Baker told her there was no doubt 
about Tom being legally free and if he could be gotten into 
a free State there would be no further need of legal pro- 
ceedings. It was found that this could not be done, so legal 
proceedings were brought in the county where Tom was 
held a slave, to liberate him. The facts with affidavits to 
back them up were filed in the case. The court, after hear- 
ing all the evidence, decided that since Tom had been given 
emancipation papers which made him free and since he had 



382 Readings in Indiana History 

indentured himself for thirty years and had put in over 
time on the agreement, he was now free. 

Tom came back to Indiana with my mother and lived 
with our family during the rest of his life and when he died 
we gave him a royal funeral, feeling that we had lost our 
best friend and one of Nature's noblemen. 

129. Beecher's View of the Fugitive Slave Law 

(From the Indianapolis Free Democrat, August 4, 1853; article by 

Henry Wakd Beecheb.) 

About nine years ago there came to Indianapolis, Indi- 
ana, a colored man named John Freeman. He brought with 
him some few hundred dollars, a part of which he invested 
in real estate. He was a painter, whitewasher, and man of 
all work. He married a young woman who was a servant 
in our family. His deportment won for him general respect 
and confidence. He rapidly increased his property, and is 
now worth about six thousand dollars, which, for this com- 
munity is a very handsome property. No man's word was 
better than Freeman's. He was honest, punctual, and re- 
liable. He became an active member of the colored Baptist 
church and conscientiously discharged his duties as a church 
member. He has a family of three children. On the 23d 
of June a man named Pleasant Ellington, formerly from 
Kentucky, now of Missouri, who is, we understand, a Meth- 
odist preacher (an impostor), appeared in Indianapolis and 
found miscreants base enough to assist him in arresting 
Freeman, upon the claim that he was his slave. Freeman 
claims that he is a free man and shows many papers recog- 
nizing that fact. The judge has granted nine weeks for 
Freeman to procure further evidence of his freedom. 

There are some facts that have come to our knowledge 
which it will be edifying to know. 

When Freeman's arrest was known the whole com- 
munity was moved. One hundred men of all parties, and 
of first standing in the place, such as Judge Blackford, 
Judge Wick, N. B. Palmer, Calvin Fletcher, Esq., and many 
other such, signed a bond for bail in the sum of $1,600. The 
amount in gold was brought in court to be deposited for the 



I'he Slavery Contest 383 

j)reaclier Ellington, in case Freeman proved a slave, did not 
appear, or for liis freedom in any event. The bail was re- 
fused. Rev. Mr. Ellington refused to agree to any price 
should he get possession of him, but determined to take him 
to Missouri. 

Under a pretense that he feared a rescue, the marshal 
was about to remove Freeman to Madison jail on the Ohio 
river, but has consented to leave him in the jail at Indian- 
apolis, on condition that Freeman pay $3 per day for a 
guard to watch over himself. 

We have some good but dull men in New York who have 
denied that Christian men and families were subject to sep- 
aration and sale, under the system of slavery. It is said 
that to represent such scenes as Uncle Tom's separation 
from his family and his wife is a slander. 

Yet here is a preacher of the gospel making a pilgrim.- 
age of half a thousand miles to find and arrest a member of 
a Christian church, in a free State, and drag him into 
slavery! He finds him settled down in a home which his 
own industry has secured, with a wife and three children, 
a useful and greatly respected citizen. One would think 
that a man with a particle of humanity, even if Freeman 
were his slave, upon seeing such a state of facts, would re- 
fuse to break up and desolate a family and blight the pros- 
pects of a man and fellow Christian. But so deeply has this 
fellow drunk of the spirit of patriotism that he determines 
to make mischief. Bonds and securities were offered him 
the most ample, for any price that he might demand, in case 
Freeman should be proved his slave. He refused every- 
thing. He demanded the "man/' and declared that he 
would remove him to a slave State and to slavery ! 

A man that can read such a state of facts and not feel his 
heart rising with indignation against this scoundrel clergy- 
man, ought to regard himself as having sinned away his day 
of grace, and as sealed over to reprobation. 

And yet, is this man any worse than the laws allow? 
Has he done anything illegal? This American people have 
laws within which men may violate every sentiment of hu- 
manity, smother every breath of Christianity, outrage the 



384 Readings in Indiana History- 

feelings of a whole community, crush an innocent and help- 
less family, reduce a citizen of universal respect and proved 
integrity to the level of a brute, carry him to the shambles, 
sell him forever away from his church, his children, and 
wife ; all this may be done without violating the laws of the 
land — nay, by the laws and under the direction of a magis- 
trate ! 

And so deadening has been the influence of slavery upon 
the public mind that religious teachers and religious editors 
will not find a word to say against this utter abomination, 
and many pious words will they utter in favor of this exe- 
crable traffic. 

Meanwhile, that same God who permits the existence of 
tarantulas, scorpions and other odious vermin, suffers also 
the existence of such creatures as this Rev, Mr. Ellington. 
It may serve a good purpose, in this easy, timid, shuffling 
age, to exhibit beneath the sun how utter a villain a man 
may be and yet keep within the pale of the law, within the 
permissions of the church, and within the requirements of 
the Christian ministry. To crusli the human heart, to eat a 
living household, to take a family into one's hands and 
crush it like a cluster of grapes, this is respectable, legal, 
and Christian, in the estimation of cotton patriots and pa- 
triotic Christians, who regard law as greater than justice, 
the Union as more important than public virtue and practi- 
cal Christianity. 

Such laws as that which will permit these scenes will 
destroy the conscience and humanity of the community, or 
else be itself destroyed by them. A people that have learned 
to see such sights unmoved are not far from the level of the 
Romans, whose amusements were in blood and the death of 
beasts and gladiators. 

As long as smooth prophets ease down the public con- 
science, and obsequious editors count themselves worthy to 
bind up the sandals of savage laws, whose every step perpe- 
trates as many crimes as man can commit against man, so 
long we need not wonder that there are such monsters as 
this Ellington, ruffled out as a minister of the Gospel, to the 
shame of every honest man that wears the same cloth ; and 



The Slavery Contest 385 

preaching the gospel like a volcano, through whose base 
flames the fires of perdition. 

It will not forever be thus! There is an unperverted 
heart ! There is a Judge above corruption. There are laws 
neither framed in deceit nor red-mouthed with the blood of 
the innocent. We turn to that great Heart, guardian of the 
Supreme and Universal law, (beneath which the miserable, 
piddling enactments of paltry politicians and mousing mer- 
chants are as grass, withered leaves beneath the cedars of 
Lebanon.) Has not the shame of our nakedness appeared 
long enough? How long shall this land stand before the 
world like a drunken woman loosely exhibiting her hideous 
charms, which none can behold without shame and disgust? 

130. A Struggle for Liberty 

(From Reminiscences, by Levi Coffin [1880], pp. 206-210.) 

Louis Talbert was an intelligent colored man, who be- 
longed to a slaveholder living in Kentucky, a few miles 
back of the Ohio Eiver, above Madison. Louis was not 
content with being a chattel that could be bought and sold, 
but kept planning how he might gain his freedom. For 
several years he had quietly and shrewxUy been gaining all 
the information he could in regard to that land of liberty 
he had heard of so often, and at last concluded to make the 
attempt to reach it. 

He ventured to divulge his secret to several of his trusty 
friends and fellow-servants in the neighborhood, and twelve 
of them agreed to join him in the attempt to gain freedom. 
They met frequently, late at night, in the woods or some 
other secluded place in the neighborhood, to consult to- 
gether and to make their plans. The chief difficulty that 
they would have to encounter in their journey was the Ohio 
River — they had no way of crossing it, and knew not what 
to do. Finally, Louis Talbert, who was the leading spirit 
among them, suggested the construction of a raft. This at 
once solved the problem, and the time to start was agreed 
upon. 

On the appointed night the party made their way to a 
point on the river bank selected by Louis. Having some 

25—1643 



386 



Readings in Indiana History 



suitable tools with them, they soon prepared two logs and 
pinned them together. When the little raft was launched 
upon the water, it was found that only two persons could 
ride on it at a time. Their expectations of all getting 
across that night were disappointed, for it was late when 
they reached the river, and only six had been transported 
to the Indiana shore when daylight warned the party to 




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Map of Underground Railroad in Indiana. 

seek concealment. They hid in the thickets, on each side 
of the river, during the day, and when night came the re- 
maining six were safely ferried across. But this delay 
operated against them, and came near proving fatal to 
their hopes. 

When so much valuable property was found to be miss- 
ing in the neighborhood they had left, it created great ex- 
citement among their masters and other slaveholders. A 



The Slavery Contest 387 

large company started out to hunt for the runaways, and 
crossed the river at various points, in order, if possible, to 
intercept them in their flight. The second night, when all 
the fugitives were safely over the river, they started on 
their way northward through Indiana. They made little 
progress before day began to dawn, and soon had to seek 
places in the bushes, where they could remain in safety dur- 
ing the day. By this time, some of the hunters had got 
ahead of them, and had given the alarm, and offered large 
rewards for their capture. In the counties of Indiana bor- 
dering the Ohio River, fugitive slaves were in as much 
danger of being captured as on the other side of the river, 
for there were many persons on the lookout for them who 
hoped to get the rewards offered by the slaveholders in such 
cases. 

The next night Louis and his companions left their hid- 
ing places, but being pinched with hunger, they sought to 
obtain some food before starting on their journey north- 
ward. They went to a house to buy some provisions, not 
thinking that they were in great danger But a large party 
of hunters were in the neighborhood, and were soon ap- 
prised of their presence. The fugitives were closely pur- 
sued by a large party of armed men, the party from 
Kentucky having been joined by a number of ruffians in the 
neighborhood, who were as eager in the chase as they would 
have been in a fox or a deer hunt. Louis and his compan- 
ions ran in different directions, and endeavored to hide in 
the woods and cornfields, but most of the party were cap- 
turned, only Louis and three other succeeding in making 
their escape. After traveling several nights, during which 
time they suffered much from hunger and exposure, they 
reached my house. We received and cared for them, and 
they remained with us several days, resting from their 
fatiguing and anxious journey. They were then put on 
the old reliable road leading to Canada, and reached that 
country in safety. 

Louis remained there about one year, then returned to 
Indiana, and staid a few days at my house. He said he 
was on his way back to Kentucky. He had two sisters still 



388 



Readings in Indiana History 




Tlie Old Bacon Home. A station on the Underground Railroad. 




Arrival of Fugitives on the Underground Railroad, 



The Slavery Contest 389 

In bondage, and was determined to make an effort to bring 
them away. They belonged to a man living about thirty 
miles back from the river. Louis felt much anxiety about 
them, as they were young women grown and were regarded 
as valuable property by their master. He feared that they 
would be sold to traders and taken to the far South, as such 
property was in demand and would bring high prices. I 
tried to dissuade Louis from such a hazardous undertaking. 
I told him that he would risk his own liberty and might not 
be able to effect the rescue of his sisters, but he was deter- 
mined to go. He was well acquainted in that neighborhood 
with both colored and white people, and, relying on his 
shrewdness and judgTaent, he made the bold venture. After 
crossing the river into Kentucky, he moved cautiously in 
the night season from one negro quarter to another where 
he was acquainted. He encouraged several of his particu- 
lar friends to join him and prepare to make the journey to 
Canada. He assured them he was well acquainted with the 
route and could conduct them safely, and told them of the 
many good friends they would find on their way to liberty. 
The sweet word of liberty, and the hope of all its blessings 
and privileges, thrilled their hearts, and they at once agreed 
to make the effort to gain it under the leadership of Louis. 
The plans were all made, both men and and women being 
in the party who were to attempt to escape. 

Louis went several nights to the place where his sisters 
were, and watched about the house, trying to get an inter- 
view with them, but they were house-servants, and were 
kept in at night so closely that it seemed impossible for him 
to make himself known to them and talk with them without 
discovery. 

One moonlight night as he was watching the house, try- 
ing to attract the attention of his sisters, their master saw 
and recognized him. The signal for pursuit was at once 
given and the alarm raised. A neighbor who had several 
bloodhounds was summoned, and the dogs were put on tlie 
trail. By this time, however, Louis had reached the woods, 
and being well acquainted with the country, he knew how 



390 Readings in Indiana History 

to choose the paths that would be most difficult for the pur- 
suers, Louis knew how to charm the dogs, and he received 
no harm from them. 

He baffled his pursuers and made good his escape, bring- 
ing with him four or five of his slave friends, including two 
women. Thus, though he failed to get his sisters, his 
mission was not entirely unsuccessful. He made his way 
to the Ohio River with his company, and finding a skiff tliet 
crossed in safety to the Indiana side. They then proceeded 
as rapidly as possible to a station of the Underground Eail- 
road, and that line soon brought them to my house. They 
remained with us a short time, and were then forwarded 
to Canada. 

131. A Slave-Hunter Outwitted 

(From Reminiscences, by Levi Coffin [1880], pp. 170-177.) 

The story that I am about to relate may, in some of its 
particulars, seem improbable or even impossible, to any 
reader not acquainted with the workings of the southern 
division of the Underground Railroad. That two young- 
slave girls could successfully make their escape from a 
Southern State and travel hundreds of miles, hiding in the 
day, in thickets and other secluded places, and traveling at 
night, crossing rivers and swamps, and passing undis- 
covered through settlements, appears more like a story of 
romance than one of sober reality. But I will not test the 
reader 's credulity by leaving this story unexplained ; I will 
give a few items regarding the manner of the escape of 
many slaves from the South. I have always contended that 
the Underground Railroad, so called, was a Southern insti- 
tution; that it had its origin in the slave States. Tt was, 
however, conducted on quite a different principle south of 
Mason and Dixon's line, from what it was on this side. 
South of the line money, in most cases, was the motive; 
north, we generally worked on principle. For the sake of 
money, people in the South would help slaves to escape and 
convey them across the line, and by this means, women with 
their children, and young girls, like the subject of this story, 
were enabled to reach the North. They were hidden in 



The Slavery Contest 391 

wagons, or stowed away in secret places on steamboats, or 
conducted on foot tlirougli the country, by shrewd managers 
who traveled at night and knew what places to avoid. 

Free colored people who had relatives in slavery were 
willing to contribute to the utmost of their means, to aid in 
getting their loved ones out of bondage; just as we would 
do if any of our loved ones were held in thralldom. It was 
by some line of the Southern Underground Railroad that 
two slave girls, living in Tennessee, managed to escape and 
reach Cabin Creek, Randolph county, Indiana, where lived 
their grandparents and most of their near relatives, who 
were free. 

This neighborhood was settled principally by free 
colored people who had purchased government land in forty 
or eighty acre lots ; in some instances a quarter section — 
one hundred and sixty acres — had been entered. A dense 
settlement of free colored people had formed at Cabin 
Creek, and a good school had been established there, under 
the auspices of New Garden Quarterly Meeting of Friends. 

Near the center of the colony lived the grandparents of 
the two girls mentioned, and there the girls stayed, after 
their long and perilous journey, enjoying their newly gained 
liberty, and hoping that their master would never learn of 
their whereabouts. But they were not destined to dwell 
here in safety. Their master had come to Richmond, os- 
tensibly to look about the neighborhood and buy cattle, but 
really to gain some trace of his slave property. He hired 
spies and sent them into different neighborhoods. Cabin 
Creek among the rest, and thus the girls were discovered. 
When the master learned that his two slave girls were so 
near, he felt as if they were already in his power, but when 
he heard more concerning Cabin Creek neighborhood and 
the character of the colored people there, he began to think 
it might not be so easy to effect a capture. When a slave- 
hunter came to Cabin Creek, the people banded together to 
protect the fugitive he was after, and as they were very 
determined in their defense it was a difficult matter to cax)- 
ture the slave. They had prearranged signals for such 
occasions, and the alarm soon called the people together. 



392 Readings in Indiana History 

The master of the two girls obtained a writ and placed 
it in the hands of an officer, then gathered a company of 
roughs from Richmond, Winchester and other neighbor- 
hoods, and rode out to Cabin Creek at the head of a large 
company of -armed men. They marched to the cabin where 
the two girls were, and surrounded it. 

The alarm was given as soon as the company were seen 
approaching, and a boy mounted a horse and rode off at 
full speed to spread the alarm. He was fired at by some 
of the company, and a rifle ball grazed his arm, making a 
slight flesh wound. This only hastened his speed and in- 
creased the excitement. The grandfather of the two girls 
was away from home, but the brave old grandmother seized 
a corn-cutter and placed herself in the only door of the 
cabin, defying the crowd and declaring that she would cut 
the first man in two who undertook to cross the threshold. 
Thus she kept the slave-hunter and his posse at bay, while 
a large crowd of colored people collected. Quite a number 
of white people came also, some out of curiosity or sympa- 
thy with the master, and others who sympathized with the 
fugitives. It is said that there were more than two hun- 
dred people gathered around the cabin. The sound of the 
horn, and the message of the boy, had brought together 
most of the colored people in the settlement. An uncle of 
the slave girls, who lived near by, seeing the crowd as they 
rode up, placed himself near his mother, on the outside of 
the door, and several other sturdy negroes stood by his 
side. 

He was a shrewd sharp fellow, with a fair education, 
and kept his presence of mind under the exciting circum- 
stances. He demanded to see the writ, and it was handed 
to him by the officer. He read it over carefully, and tried 
to pick flaws in it. He denied that it gave them any au- 
thority to enter that house to search for property. The 
laws of Indiana did not recognize human beings as proper- 
ty until they had been proved to be such, and that was a 
difficult thing to do. He said that he doubted very much 
whether the man who had obtained this writ to arrest two 
slave girls could prove them to be his property. Further- 



The Slavery Contest 393 

more, he did not believe the girls were in that house. He 
extended the debate with the master as long as possible, and 
in the meantime several colored people had been permitted 
to pass in and out under the sharp edge of the old woman's 
corn-cutter, but no white person had been admitted. 

While the debate was going on, arrangements were being 
made, both outdoors and indoors, for the escape of the girls. 
The uncle understood all this perfectly, and he was doing 
his part toward success, by prolonging the palaver. The 
girls dressed in boys ' clothes, and put on slouch hats ; then, 
while the debate outside grew warm and excitement began 
to run high, and the slavehunters to declare that they would 
enter the house, in spite of the corn-cutter and other ob- 
structions, the girls passed out of the door with other 
negroes, and made their way through the crowd. Two fleet 
horses, with light but very capable riders, stood near the 
side of a large log, screened from the sight of the crowd by 
some tall bushes. The girls stepped quickly on the log and 
sprang, one on each horse, behind the riders, and were soon 
out of sight. Wlien the uncle knew that the girls were at 
a safe distance, he began to moderate and proposed a com- 
promise. Speaking in a whisper to his mother, he appeared 
to be consulting with her on the subject, and finally said 
that if the master of the girls would agree to give them a 
fair trial at Winchester, he and his posse would be allowed 
to enter the house peaceably. This was agreed to, and the 
grandmother laid aside her weapon of defense, and ap- 
peared calm and subdued. The master and his posse 
rushed in to seize the girls, and those outside, who could 
not see into the house, listened to hear the girls' screams 
of terror and pleadings for mercy while their master bound 
them. But they heard nothing of the kind, only oaths and 
exclamations from the men as they searched about the cabin 
and up in the loft. The hunters were baffled ; the girls were 
not to be found. The darkies seemed in a good humor, and 
there was a general display of white teeth in broad grins. 
Some of the white folks also seemed amused, and inclined 
to make sport of the misfortune of the master. It was no 
laughable matter to him — to be duped by negroes and to 



394 Readings in Indiana History 

lose such valuable property as these girls were, either of 
whom would soon be worth one thousand dollars. Some in 
the crowd were unfeeling enough to jest at his loss, and to 
advise him to look around and see if there was not a hole 
in the ground where the girls had been let down to the Un- 
derground Railroad. 

When the master fully realized how he had been out- 
witted, his wrath knew no bounds, but his hired assistants 
tried to comfort him with the thought that they could soon 
ferret out the fugitives, and promised to make a thorough 
search through the abolition neighborhoods. 

The girls were taken a short distance on the Winchester 
road; then through by-ways and cross-roads they were 
brought through Cherry Grove settlement of Friends to 
Newport, a distance of about twenty miles. The girls were 
much exhausted when they arrived at our house, having 
had a hard ride, part of the way in the night. After taking 
some nourishment, they were placed in a private room to 
.-est during the remainder of the night, and were soon sound 
asleep. We did not apprehend any danger that night, as 
we supposed a vigorous search would be made at Cabin 
Creek and neighboring settlements, and that our town 
would not be searched till the hunt in the other localities 
had been prosecuted and proved fruitless. 

Some time the next day, a messenger arrived at my 
house from Cabin Creek, and told us that after failing to 
find the girls at their grandfather's, the posse of pursuers 
had divided into several squads to search the different 
neighborhoods, and that one company were on their way to 
Newport. That afternoon several strangers were seen 
rambling about our village, inquiring for stray horses, and 
going abruptly into the houses of colored people living in 
the suburbs. It was not difficult to guess what was their 
real business. I was busy in my store when I learned of 
the conduct of these strangers, but went at once to the house 
and told my wife that negro-hunters were in the town, and 
that she must secrete the two girls. She was used to such 
business, and was not long in devising a plan. Taking the 
two girls, who had by this time been dressed in female ap- 



The Slavery Contest 395 

parel, into a bedroom, she hid them between the straw tick 
and feather tick, allowing them room for breathing, then 
made up the bed as usual, smoothed the counterpane and 
put on the pillows. But the girls were so excited and 
amused at the remembrance of how they outwitted" massa," 
and of their ride, dressed in boys' clothes, and at their 
novel position, that they laughed and giggled until my wife 
had to separate them, and put one in another bed. I went 
back to my store and left Aunt Katy, as every one called 
my wife, to manage affairs at the house. If the searchers 
attempted to enter our house, she was to rattle the large 
dinner bell violently, and at this signal the neighbors would 
rush in, and I would get the proper officers and have the 
negro-hunters arrested for atteinpting to enter my house 
without legal authority. 

But these proceedings were not necessary. The hunters 
did not have courage enough to enter my house, though they 
knew it w^as a depot of the Underground Railroad. Hear- 
ing that threats were made against them in the village, they 
left without giving us any trouble. 

We kept the girls very secluded for several weeks until 
the master had given up the search, and had gone home. 
Then having other fugitives to forward to the North, we 
sent them altogether via the Greenville and Sandusky 
route to Canada, where they arrived in safety. 

132. Jerry Sullivan's Raid at the Old Dongola Bridge 

(From A Pioneer History of InMana, by Col. William M. Cockrum [1907], 

pp. 587-591.) 

In 1851 Mr. Andrew Adkins came across the Patoka 
river at Dongola to see my father. It was late in the sum- 
mer and the farm work was nearly all done, as we were just 
cutting our fence corners. My father was not at home and 
Mr. Adkins remained until after dinner to see him. There 
were three hands beside myself at work on the farm. As 
Mr. Adkins was coming over that morning, two men from 
near Kirk's Mills, now called Bovine, overtook and rode to 
the bridge with him. They showed him a flaming handbill 
giving a description of seven runaway negroes and offering 



396 Readings in Indiana History 

a reward of one thousand dollars for their capture. They 
informed Mr. Adkins that they, with some others, intended 
to watch the bridge that nigiit, and invited him to assist 
them, offering to share the reward with him if they got the 
negroes. 

Mr. Adkins was very anxious for fear they would catch 
the negroes, and while we were resting after dinner he so 
expressed himself to the hands. At that time we had a 
discharged soldier of the regular army, named Jerry Sulli- 




The liuiiaway. Picture used in liaii(ll)ills and newspaper advertisements. 

van, working for us. In the talk Sullivan asked why it 
would not be a good plan to rout the bridge-watchers. This, 
Mr. Adkins thought, would be a good thing to do, but the 
fugitive slave law gave the men the lawful right to catch 
them, and the courts in this country were so organized that 
it was dangerous business to try to hinder anyone from re- 
capturing the slaves. Those capturing them for the reward 
had the same rights under the law as the master had. Sulli- 
van was a full-fledged Abolitionist and said, "Fugitive slave 
law to the winds ! Just give me a chance and I will clean 
out that iDridge-watching gang in good shape." Mr. Ad- 



The Slavery Contest 397 

kins had the will, but he did not dare go into the conspiracy, 
as the two men wdio offered to divide the reward with him 
were neighbors of his, and if it was found out he was in the 
scrape, they w^ould cause him to pay a heavy fine. 

Sullivan was very anxious to get after them and con- 
sulted us young boys about going with him. The other 
boys working for us were Wm. B. Dill and Thos. Midcalf. 
Finally it w^as agreed that we w^ould all pretend to go fishing 
late that evening and put out a trot-line and stay until late 
in the night. Mr. Adkins agreed that he would go home 
and send his younger brother, Pinkerton Adkins, and 
Hiram Knight, a neighbor boy, late in the evening to go 
with us. Before he would agree to do anything, he made 
us promise not to kill anyone and that we must not injure 
the horses of the men guarding the bridge. After we made 
these promises he said he would see Basil Simpson, who 
lived on the bluff but a little way west of the bridge and 
who was thoroughly in sympathy with the anti-slavery peo- 
ple, and ask him to watch where the men put their horses. 
When the two boys came over late in the evening they were 
to remain near Mr. Simpson's until the watchers had got 
to the bridge and had hidden their horses ; then the boys 
would come on to the agreed rendezvous, which was about 
one mile south of the bridge. After these arrangements 
were made, Mr. Adkins went home, thinking we would not 
do anything more desperate than turning their horses loose 
and driving them away so they would not find them for 
some days. 

Finally my father came home and we got his consent to 
go to the river fishing. Sullivan got a number of old news- 
papers and rubbed wet powder all over them, leaving it in 
lumps so that it would flash when it was burning and make 
a regular flambeau. He dried the paper in the sun and 
then took a lot of fuse which he had been using in blasting 
stumps. Taking a good supply of flax strings which we 
made for the purpose, he made six large broaches out of 
the newspapers. 

We had plenty of horses and about sundown we took our 
trot-line and guns and started for the river. When we 



398 Readings in Indiana History 

arrived at the meeting place we had to wait until a little 
after dark, when the two boys came, mounted and armed for 
the fun. As Sullivan had been a soldier and was much older 
than any of the rest, it was unanimously agreed that he 
should have full command and we would do as he directed. 

Mr. Simpson and the two Pike county boys had located 
the horses in a patch of small saplings. As I now recollect 
it, they were less than one hundred yards southwest of the 
Dongola coal mine shaft and there were seven of them. The 
two Kirk's Mill men told Mr. Adkins there would be six 
and gave him their names. One of them was a doctor, who at 
that time lived in Lynnville, in Warrick county. One was 
a hotel-keeper who lived in Petersburg and another was one 
of his boarders. The other was a man who lived about half 
way from Dongola to Winslow on the north side of the 
river. It was never ascertained who the seventh man was. 
After the party had assembled, Sullivan took charge, giv- 
ing each a number and directed us how to form a line and 
put us through a lot of maneuvres which were pure non- 
sense to us then, but which I afterward learned were good 
military tactics. 

After waiting until about two hours after night, our 
commander got us in position two and two, and heading the 
cavalcade, gave the command to ''Forward, march!" We 
marched on until one of the Pike county boys told our com- 
mander that we were near the place the horses were hitched. 
Halting us, the commander took one of the boys and located 
the horses ; then coming back, he marched us up to the point 
where he wanted us to leave our horses. We dismounted, 
leaving one man to hold the five horses. One man, mounted, 
was stationed between the horses and the bridge to look out 
for the enemy. 

Stripping the saddles off the bridge-watchers' horses 
and piling them at the root of a large tree, we led them out 
to the road and within about two hundred yards of the 
bridge, when Sullivan unrolled his flambeau material and 
wrapped one of the broaches inside the hair of each horse's 
tail. He securely tied them there leaving about six inches 
of fuse sticking out. As he had only six broaches he made 



The Slavery Contest 399 

another for the extra horse by cutting a strip out of a saddle 
blanket. He rolled it very tightly, putting about two-thirds 
of a pound of powder into it and bound the strong material 
very tightly with the flax strings. The fuse in this case 
was longer than the others, as he said he wanted it to go off 
near the bridge. 

He lighted all the fuses, then ordered us to turn the 
horses loose and start them down the road toward the 
bridge. We soon had our horses started after them, yelling 
like so many Indians. The broaches commenced to pop 
and fizz at a great rate and the horses were going like tlic 
wind. In a little while the big bomb went off and I doubt 
if any one ever saw such another runaway scrape where 
there was an equal number of horses. 

They went across the bridge at top speed. When we 
got near the bridge Sullivan ordered us to halt, make ready 
and fire, which we did. Jumping off our horses we loaded 
our guns. Our commander was calling aloud giving or- 
ders to an imaginary battalion to rush over the bridge and 
capture the villains. 

About this time Tom Midcalf , who was a fearless fellow, 
became very much excited, jumped on his horse and ran over 
the bridge hallooing like a Comanche Indian. We kept up 
a fusillade for some time but there was no one there. The 
charge of the horses with the snapping and flashing of fire 
tied to their tails was enough to have scared the devil, let 
alone a few cowardly scamps Avho were waiting to capture 
a lot of poor runaway negroes trying to get away from the 
bonds of slavery. 

All the evidence of there having been anybody there was 
the horses, and we found a bed made down above the bridge 
where one relief of negro-hunters were no doubt lying when 
the horses came charging onto them. We found two pairs 
of boots under the bed put there for the purpose of raising 
their heads. We also found a bushel basket in which they 
had their provisions. 

Sullivan rolled up a lot of rock in their bed and threw 
it into the river. He cut their boots into strips and threw 
them into the river. Then he sent three of the boys back 



400 



Readings in Indiana History 



and got the seven saddles, cut tlieni all to pieces and threw 
them into the river. I don't know how far the horses ran, 
but probably several miles. 

It was believed that the men guarding the bridge were on 
the go before the horses crossed it and that they made good 
time until they got clear away from the noise made by our 
crowd, and the running of the liorses sounded like a host 




Old-fashioned Bridge over Patoka River, near Duff. Similar to the one 

at Dougola. 
From Wilson's History of DuJjois County. By courtesy of the author. 



of men after them. Sullivan got us into line and escorted 
the Pike county boys near to their homes and then we went 
home, arriving after midnight. Jerry Sullivan remained at 
my father 's home several weeks after these events. When 
he went away he said he was going to re-enlist in the army. 
I have often wondered what became of him. If he was 
in the war of the rebellion I am satisfied that he made his 
mark. 



The Slavery Contest 401 

133. Eldridge Hopkins to the Rescue 

(From .4. Pioneer History of Indiana, by Col. William M. Cockrum [1907], 

pp. 574-579.) 

Along in the early part of the fifties two free negro men 
who lived in northern Kentucky, not far from Rockport, 
Indiana, had been working on the Wabash and Erie Canal 
between Washington and Terre Haute for some time and 
had determined to go to their homes and had got as far as 
Washington [Indiana] on their way there, when they fell in 
with a man who seemed very friendly to them, asking them 
where they were going. When they told them, he told them 
that a friend and he were going in the same direction nearly 
to the Ohio river in a wagon and that they could go with 
them if they wanted to and it would not cost them a cent 
for the ride; that they would have provision for them on 
the trip and they could assist in preparing it, but that they 
would not be ready to start before three or four in the after- 
noon. 

The offer was a very acceptable one to the negroes and 
they gladly accepted it and said that they would be at the 
agreed point at the south side of Washington, where the two 
men with the wagon found them. 

They took the Petersburg road and it was late in the 
evening when they crossed White river at the ferry. Mr. 
John Stucky, who crossed at the same time, knew one of 
the white men, and at once suspected what he was up to, 
but could not draw him into a conversation and could not 
get a chance to talk to the colored men, as he had to hold 
his horse. He heard them tell the ferryman that they would 
stay all night in a wagon yard in Petersburg. After they 
were over the wagon traveled pretty fast. Mr. Stucky did 
not keep up with it and reached Petersburg some time after 
it had reached the wagon yard. Stucky hunted up Dr. 
John W. Posey, the father of the Hon. Frank B. Posey, and 
told him about the white men and negroes that were stop- 
ping at the wagon yard. The doctor at once understood 
the situation and sent a spy to the wagon yard to see what 
he could find. The spy reported that he found them eating 

2&— 1643 



402 Readings in Indiana History 

supper and that a noted hotel-keeper was some distance 
away engaged in conversation with one of the men. 

He talked with the negroes, who said that their homes 
were in Kentucky and that these men were letting tliem 
ride most of the way in the wagon. They had no evidence, 
but the doctor decided to have a watch kept and have the 
wagon followed to see what developments might come. 
About two hours before the day the guard who had been 
on watch came hurriedly to the doctor 's house and told him 
they were getting ready to start and had their team hitched 
to a three-seated express wagon and that the hotel man was 
with them and two other fellows whom they did not know. 
The doctor had three horses saddled and sent for a neighbor 
to ride one of them and one of his hired hands to ride an- 
other, and the doctor rode the third one. All three were 
armed. They sent the guard back to watch and report, but 
the express and men were gone. Mr. Posey and other men 
hurried after them on the Winslow road, but did not 
overtake them, as they had passed through Winslow a little 
after sun-up and thirty minutes ahead of the pursuing 
party. They followed on after them, meeting a man about 
two miles south of Winslow who said he had met the express 
about one mile south of where they were and that they had 
two runaway negroes tied together. As there were only 
three of them and four of the kidnappers, and it was sup- 
posed that men on such an expedition would go well armed, 
they felt as if they did not have an equal chance, but they 
knew that justice was on their side, so they resolved to fol- 
low on, and when the kidnappers stopped, they would find 
some one legally qualified to try the case and liberate the 
poor negroes. 

About this time they met the Rev. Eldridge Hopkins, 
who told them that he passed the express but a short mile 
south of where they were and the men inquired of him if 
he could tell them where there was a spring, as they wanted 
to eat an early dinner and feed their horses as they were 
getting fatigued. Hopkins thought nothing of it, as men 
with runaway slaves were a common occurrence in those 



The Slavery Contest 403 

days. Dr. Posey told Rev. Hopkins, with whom he was well 
acquainted, the situation, and Hopkins, who was in favor 
of justice and was good grit all the way through, offered to 
pilot them around the men if they stopped to feed so that 
they would be in front of them and could go to a justice on 
the road a few miles ahead and have papers prepared to 
stop them and release the negroes. 

Coming to the road at the point wdiere Hopkins intended, 
they found that the express had not passed, but they learned 
that the squire they wanted was away from home and be- 
fore they could find a legal light who could give them the 
right to stop the kidnappers they got into Warrick county, 
where a writ was secured. When the express came up a 
constable halted them and marched them to a justice 's court. 
At first the kidnappers were disposed to threaten, but by 
this time quite a number of men had gathered around in 
front of them. These fellows were completely nonplussed 
by the action of Dr. Posey. The two negroes were brought 
into court and told their story. Dr. Posey retold what the 
colored men had told his man the night before while one 
of the white men was eating supper with them. The crowd 
was very much in sympathy with the two unfortunates. 

The man who claimed to own them showed a hand-bill 
giving a perfect description of the two men and offering a 
reward of two hundred dollars for their recapture, dated at 
a point in Tennessee some weeks before. (This hand- 
bill was no doubt printed at Washington the day before, 
while these negroes were waiting for their new-found 
friends.) Things now began to look pretty bad for the 
negroes. Hopkins was a ready talker and he volunteered 
to defend them and made a telling story in which he had the 
sympathy of all not interested. The old justice was against 
all negroes, and he decided that they were nearly all slaves 
and those who claimed their homes in slave States were all 
slaves, and whereas their owner had produced a notice of 
them that had a perfect description and dated several weeks 
before, he would let him (the supposed owner) go with his 
property. 



404 Readings in Indiana History 

This infuriated Hopkins and lie told Dr. Posey that he 
would see that the men did not get over the Ohio River with 
the negroes. While Mr. Hopkins and Dr. Posey were hav- 
ing a consultation, Mr. Hopkins discovered that he had his 
foot on the hub of a wheel of the express the kidnappers 
had come in and saw that the wheels were held on with 
linch pins and that he could easily get one of them out, 
which he did and put it in his pocket. It was decided that 
it was best for the doctor and his two men to return home. 
Hopkins said that in that crowd he could find all the men 
he wanted to go with him on the raid. So having chosen 
them, they secured arms and were soon on the go. 

Starting off in an easterly direction, they soon found a 
road which brought them to the Boonville road and found 
that the express had not passed. They took powder and 
made themselves as black as Nubians; no one would have 
recognized them. Mr. Hopkins thought that the express 
might get some distance before the wheel came off. 

They waited for some time, but finally started up the 
road and saw the express, with one wheel off, about one 
mile or so south of where the old squire lived. When they 
got close to the express, they rushed up hurriedly and de- 
manded to know what they had the negroes tied for. The 
negroes told them that they were kidnapped. The rescuing 
party leveled their guns at the three white men and made 
them hold up their hands. One of them had gone back to 
look for the linch pin. The negroes were untied and the 
white men searched for guns. They found three old pepper- 
box revolvers of a pattern of that date and several knives. 
They also found a fine rifle in the bottom of the express. 
The negroes were made to tie the three men and they all sat 
down out of sight until the fourth man came back, when 
he was tied also. They then organized a stump court-mar- 
tial to try the three kidnappers. 

The negroes first told their story as above related. The 
four men were told that they, one at a time, could tell their 
side of the case. The would-be owner produced the hand- 
bills that Dr. Posey told Mr. Hopkins were made in Wash- 



The Slavery Contest 405 

ington. Mr. Hopkins, who was the leading spokesman, told 
them that this was the case and said that that was the worst 
feature of it. 

The court, after hearing all the evidence, decided that 
all four of them should die, for such villainy was a menace 
to good order and the peace of society, but told them that 
any one of them who would tell the whole truth should 
live. At this one of the men commenced to weaken, when 
the leader told him to remember the oath he took when he 
was hired and the penalty if he violated that obligation. At 
this Hopkins took the fellow who seemed ready to tell some- 
thing away from the rest and where they could not hear, 
and told him that if he would tell the whole truth his life 
would be spared. On this assurance, he told all he knew. 
He said that the pretended owner lived at Washington, In- 
diana, and that it was intended to carry the negroes to the 
Mississippi country and sell them ; that they had agreed to 
pay him and another man whom they hired at Petersburg 
one hundred dollars each to go with them and watch the 
negroes until they were sold, and that the team belonged 
to the leader who pretended to ow^n the negroes. 

Mr. Hopkins took the man back to the party and put the 
negroes as a guard over them. He then reassembled the 
court-martial and they had another consultation, after which 
he told the white prisoners that they deserved to die for 
such villainy, but they did not want their blood on their 
hands and had decided not to kill them, but they intended to 
give them an object lesson they would remember all the rest 
of their lives. 

Hopkins took the leader and the two negroes out in the 
woods some distance west of the road, cut two good-sized 
hickory gads and told the negroes to give him twenty-five 
hard lashes each, which they did with a will ; then he untied 
the fellow, who was evidently well whipped, and told him 
to go in a northwest direction, and not to stop nor look 
back under penalty of being shot. The two men who had 
been hired they gave ten lashes each and turned them loose 
towards Evansville. Mr. Hopkins and his party held a 



4o6 Readings in Indiana History 

final conference and then had the negroes put the wheel on, 
having given them the linch pin. They decided to turn the 
team over to the two negroes, with the pepper-box revol- 
vers and the rifle to defend themselves, deciding that they 
had undergone enough torture to have all the spoils. By 
this time it was an hour after dark. The two darkies drove 
away and these rude, but just judges went to their homes. 



CHAPTER XXVll 

INDIANA IN THE CIVIL WAR 

The crash of war found Indiana unprepared so far as arms, 
money, and supplies were concerned. There were thousands of 
men ready for the fight, and a governor ready and able to prepare 
the State for the confiict. The experiences many of the citizens 
had had with slavery and slave-holders had left most of the in- 
habitants in a warlike temper. Along the southern border, how- 
ever, were many who traded down the river and who had warm 
personal friends in the South. These saw with regret the division 
of the Union. But even these responded quickly to the call to 
arms. From all parts of the State there was the same hearty 
response. It would be difficult to find in history a people who 
engaged with such spirit in an offensive war. With a population 
about half as large as that of the colonies in 1776, the State sent out 
an army five times as large. The following selections, it is hoped, 
will give some idea of the spirit displayed by Indiana in this 
crisis. 

134. Lincoln in Indiana 

(From the Indianapolis Daily Journal. Febrnary 12, ISOl.) 

(Lincoln's Speech at the State Line) 

Gentlemen of Indiana : I am happy to meet you on this 
occasion, and enter again the State of my early life, and 
almost my nativity. I am under many obligations to you 
for your kind reception, and to Indiana for the aid she has 
rendered the cause which I think eminently a just one. 

Gentlemen, I shall address you at greater length at In- 
dianapolis, but not much greater. Again, gentlemen, I 
thank you for your warm-hearted reception. 

Leaving the crowd, amid the firing of cannon, and the 
waving of flags and handkerchiefs, the train left the State 
line. It was greeted by similar crowds at Attica, and other 
points on the road. 

f407) 



4o8 Readings in Indiana History 

(At Lafayette) 

When the train arrived at Lafayette another monster 
crowd welcomed the incoming president, and while the 
trains were switching preparatory to transferring passen- 
gers and baggage, Mr. Lincoln made a short speech in re- 
sponse to the loud cries of the assembled multitude. 

Crowds greeted the train at every station between La- 
fayette and Indianapolis, and at every place where it 
stopped Mr. Lincoln showed himself on the platform of the 
cars and spoke a few words to the people. 

(At Indianapolis) 

When the train came in sight of this city its arrival was 
announced by the roar of artillery. Thirty-four rounds 
were fired in honor of the thirty-four States of the Union. 

At five o 'clock the train stopped at the crossing of Wash- 
ington street, where it was met by members of the legisla- 
ture, the officers of State, the City Council, the military 
company of the city, the Fire Department of Indianapolis 
and thousands of men, women and children on foot, in car- 
riages and on horseback. Every part of the State was 
represented, and every political party, by hundreds and 
thousands of persons. 

(Reception of the President-Elect) 

When Mr. Lincoln left the cars and made his appearance 
where he could be seen, deafening cheers arose that sounded 
above the roar of the cannon and the loudest blasts of the 
bands playing in the vicinity. The President-elect was 
welcomed by Governor Morton in the following speech : 

(Governor Morton's Speech) 

Sir : On behalf of the people of Indiana I bid you wel- 
come. They avail themselves of this occasion to offer their 
tribute of high respect to your character as a man, and as 
a statesman, and in your person to honor the high office to 
which you have been elected. 

In every free government there will be differences of 
opinion, and these differences result in the formation of 



Indiana in the Civil War 409 

parties ; but when the voice of the people has been expressed 
through the forms of the Constitution, all patriots yield to 
it obedience. Submission to the popular will is the essen- 
tial principle of Republican government, and so vital is 
this principle that it admits of but one exception, which is 
revolution. To weaken it is anarchy; to destroy it is des- 
potism. It recognizes no appeal beyond the ballot-box ; and 
while it is preserved. Liberty may be wounded but never 
slain. 

To this principle the people of Indiana, men of all par- 
ties, are loyal, and they here welcome you as the Chief Mag- 
istrate-elect of the Republic. 

When our fathers framed the Constitution they declared 
it was to form a more perfect union, establish justice, and 
to secure the blessings of liberty to themselves and their 
posterity, and for these considerations we proclaim our pur- 
pose to maintain that Constitution inviolate as it came from 
their hands. 

This Union has been the idol of our hopes ; the parent of 
our prosperity; our shield and protection abroad, and our 
title to the respect and consideration of the world. May it 
be preserved is the prayer of every patriotic heart in In- 
diana, and that it shall be, the determination. 

(Reply of the President-Elect) 

Governor Morton and Fellow Citizens of the State of In- 
diana : 

Most heartily do I thank you for this magnificent recep- 
tion, and while I cannot take to myself any share of the 
compliment thus paid, more than that which pertains to a 
mere instrument, an accidental instrument, perhaps I 
should say, of a great cause, I yet must look upon it as a 
most magnificent reception, and as such most heartily do I 
thank you for it. You have been pleased to address your- 
self to me chiefly in behalf of this glorious Union in which 
we live, in all of which you have my hearty sympathy, and, 
as far as may be within my power, will have, one and insep- 
arably, my heart}^ consideration ; while I do not expect, upon 
this occasion, or until I get to Washington, to attempt any 



4IO Readings in Indiana History 

lengthy speech, I will only say that to the salvation of this 
Union there needs but one single thing, the hearts of a peo- 
ple like yours. (Applause.) 

The people, when they arise in mass in behalf of the 
Union, and the liberties of their country, truly it may be 
said, ''The gates of hell can not prevail against them." 
(Renewed applause.) In all trying positions in which I 
shall be placed, and doubtless I shall be placed in many such, 
my reliance will be placed upon you, and the people of the 
United States — and I wish you to remember, now and for- 
ever, that it is your business, and not mine; that if the 
Union of these States, and the liberties of this people, shall 
be lost, it is but little to any one man of fifty-two years of 
age, but a great deal to the thirty millions of people who 
inhabit these United States, and to their posterity in all 
coming time. It is your business to rise up and preserve 
the Union and liberty for yourselves, and not for me. 

I desire they should be constitutionally performed. I, 
as already intimated, am but an accidental instrument, tem- 
porary, and to serve but for a limited time, and I appeal to 
you again to constantly bear in mind that with you, and not 
with politicians, not with presidents, not with officeseekers, 
but with you, is the question: Shall the Union and shall 
the liberties of this country be preserved to the latest gen- 
erations? (Cheers.) 

135. Governor Morton as the Soldiers' Fi-iend 

(From the Life of Oliver P. Morton, by William Dudley Foulke [1899]. 

I, pp. 524-528. Copyrighted. Used by special permission of the 

publishers, the Bobbs-Merrill Company.) 

His friendship for the soldiers did not proceed from 
mere desire for popularity. At any hour, under any cir- 
cumstances, no matter how imperative the demands upon 
his time, he gave way to their appeals and became as tender 
as a woman in his sympathy. With rare exceptions he per- 
sonally bade each regiment good-bye when it left for the 
front, and was present to welcome it when it returned. 
' ' Whenever an Indiana man followed the flag or pitched his 
tent, whether on the Potomac or the Mississippi, he was con- 



Indiana in the Civil War 411 

stantly the object of Morton's care." Ahnost before the 
smoke had lifted from the battlefields Morton's surgeons 
and nurses were there with medicines and military stores. 
Morton often went with them. After the capture of Ft. 
Donelson he was on the first boat that came up the river. 
An Indiana soldier that was wounded at Shiloli said: "I 
saw the Governor reach out and shake hands, and then the 
tears started in his eyes as he saw the wounded and heard 
their groans. Since then I knew how he loved us." 

His confidence in the troops was such that he never hesi- 
tated to ask their services. The Forty-third Indiana, worn 
out, came back on veteran furlough. Governor Bramlette, 
of Kentucky, needed them immediately at Frankfort. Mor- 
ton asked them to go, and pledged them an extended fur- 
lough on their return. Next day they were on their way to 
Frankfort. 

''He was most prompt," says Carrington, "in his meth- 
ods for relief. Transportation was needed for lumber to 
build quarters. Morton said : ' Seize the cars. I will set- 
tle all questions after the lumber is in the camp.' " He 
often gave commissions that surprised the recipient. A 
raw sentry at Camp Carrington struck his commanding offi- 
cer, who was riding across the beat. He was directed to 
report to the Governor and receive his deserts. He re- 
ported, saying: "I was ordered to not let anybody cross 
the lines." He was commissioned and complimented. 

It was not unusual for Morton to rise from his bed at 
midnight, go to the Journal office and have published some 
proclamation or suggestion for the welfare of the troops. 

A regiment that came to Indianapolis was quartered in 
a building with a leaky roof. At two o 'clock in the morn- 
ing the Governor was awakened by a fierce storm of rain. 
He called his secretary, asked where the troops were, and 
on learning, said ' ' I will go and have them moved. ' ' They 
were transferred to the State-house. 

His industry was unflagging. "The secret of success," 
said he to his son, "is hard work." While he was Gov- 
ernor he had three secretaries. When he was away they had 
time to spare, but he was not at home an hour before they 



412 Readings in Indiana History 

were so crowded with work that they had to sit far into the 
night to accomplish it. He would often go to the State- 
house and remain all night, while his wife, who feared for 
his safety, would put out the lights in the executive mansion 
and keep watch in the dark at the window until he came 
back. His personal habits were shaped by the needs of his 
public work. Sleep, rest and appetite had to wait upon his 
convenience. He would often leave his books and papers 
at the side of his bed that he might take up work in the 
morning. At break of day he generally called for the news- 
papers, which were brought to him before he rose or break- 
fasted. In the presence of public business no physical weak- 
ness, no requirements of comfort or health could keep him 
from the present demand for thought and action. Even 
when he was ill the advice of his physician was neglected. 
''I have no time to be sitting here," he would say, and then 
he would plunge into work again. In the Senate he was 
seldom absent from his post. He attended, with great reg- 
ularity, the meetings of the committees to which he be- 
longed. He was present at every session of the electoral 
commission, although then close to the verge of the grave. 
He accomplished more work than any man in the Senate. 
He accommodated himself with "a kind of cynical indiffer- 
ence to his crippled body, and dragged it about with him 
somewhat as a snail does its shell. ' ' 

Indeed, worl?: was a necessity to him. For his restless 
spirit there was no repose. ^'I saw him once sitting in 
front of the Ebbitt House," said Senator Ingalls. ''He 
looked miserable and dejected, and I spoke of it. He an- 
swered, ' I am never happy except when I am at work. ' ' ' 

Always prompt and energetic himself, he exacted the 
same promptness and energy from those around him. An 
idle subordinate was never tolerated. 

Between the sessions of Congress, instead of practicing 
law, he gave his attention to his public work. Upon his 
journeys he was often accompanied by his private secre- 
tary, whom he kept. a 



Indiana in the Civil War 413 

136. Governor Morton as a Leader 

(Prom the Life of Oliver P. Morton, by William Dudley Foulke [1899], 

I, pp. 516-520. Copyrighted. Used by special permission of 

the publishers, The Bobbs-Merrill Company.) 

Morton was a born commander. "Where McGregor sat 
there was the head of the table. ' ' He would not follow any- 
body. He would always have his own way. He was twice 
offered a cabinet place, but among the reasons for his re- 
fusal he said : 

"I am unwilling to put it in the power of any man to 
dismiss me from a public position." 

His leadership was recognized everywhere ; his enemies 
acknowledged it in their denunciations. He was ' ' Goliath, ' ' 
''The Blind Sampson who pulled down the Pillars of Re- 
construction, " " The Giant, " " The Elephant who trampled 
upon his own Friends," etc. His associates bear testimony 
to it sometimes unwillingly. James N. Tyner once criti- 
cised one of Morton's speeches. They talked it over to- 
gether and soon found that they agreed, and Tyner said to 
himself in disgust when they parted: "That man has had 
his own way again." He employed instruments (and he 
could always lay his hand on the right man for the work in 
hand), but he suffered no peers among his associates. 
Among those who did not dispute his leadership he was well 
beloved; with others he was often the object of jealousy 
and envy. An autocrat by divine right, many traits of his 
character were essentially autocratic. He was often intol- 
erant to those who opposed him. He believed in his own 
conclusions so utterly that not to yield to him was, in a fol- 
lower, something akin to treason. But he did not claim this 
leadership by arrogant assumption. His manner of gov- 
erning men was by absence of self-assertion, and the ac- 
ceptance of suggestions in such a Avay that while others be- 
lieved they were leading him, he soon had them moulded to 
his own purposes. 

"He would talk with a man," says Mr, Hitt, "for a long 
while, and after the conversation was over, the upshot was 
that the other man had converted Morton to Morton's own 
views. ' ' 



414 Readings in Indiana History 

He branded liis personality on those around him. The 
senators who came to his room and gathered about his bed 
upon their committee work were impressed with the con- 
sciousness of his power. ''It was a strange sight," said 
Senator Ingalls, ' ' to see the old giant lying helpless in bed, 
pounding and gesticulating, and impressing his views upon 
the committee." 

Sometimes circumstances make the man, but Morton was 
a man who made circumstances bend to his imperial will. 
While Governor of Indiana he was the State, the center of 
all power in and through whom it acted. He was thor- 
oughly conscious of his own powders and entirely reliant 
upon them. When he was elected to the Senate he shook 
his head and said to himself, unconscious of the presence of 
his son, "They want a leader there." He never avoided 
responsibility. No matter how great the emergency, he 
was always a little greater than the requirements. When 
the Indiana legislature refused to furnish money for the 
State, he borrowed it himself and carried on the govern- 
ment alone. In critical matters he trusted no one. When 
the Sons of Liberty plotted against his life, his spies, un- 
known to each other, reported to him personally at different 
places; each watched the others and told him all that was 
done, and by the concurrence of their testimony Morton 
could tell how faithful each one was to his duty. 

Perhaps Morton's supreme quality was his "stout- 
hearted persistency which pursued its object through sun- 
shine and storm, undaunted by clouds or dangers." What 
to most men was depression, was to him inspiration. What 
to others foreboded disaster, to him was the prophecy of 
victory. "With a courage that was undismayed by the 
presence of overwhelming antagonists, he became more de- 
fiant as the elements against him became more successfully 
combined." "He never lost faith, but worked resolutely 
to the end with unfaltering confidence in his ability to win. ' ' 
The quality which Conkling most admired in him was "his 
indomitable heart. ' ' No labor discouraged him, no contin- 
gency appalled him, no disadvantage dismayed him, no de- 
feat disheartened him." 



Indiana in the Civil War 415 

137- A Newspaper Story of Morgan's Raid 

(From the Indianapolis Daily Sentinel, July 15, 1863.) 

On the morning of July 8, 1863, General John H. Morgan rode 
into Brandenburg, Kentucky, at the head of 2,200 Confederate 
cavalry. He quickly brushed aside the Indiana militia opposing 
him and crossed into Harrison county, Indiana. The cavalrymen 
had a high time for a few days. At Corydon they "changed 
clothes," taking $3,500 worth of clothing from one store. Within 
forty-eight hours 65,000 Union men were armed and on the look- 
out for Morgan. He turned to the east, passed by Palmyra and 
Salem, his flanks sweeping Greenville and Paoli. His soldiers cut 
all kinds of capers. But their jollity was of short duration. Gen- 
eral Hobson with a force of 4,000 Union cavalry was coming on 
their trail. From Salem, Morgan hurried east, leaving the State at 
Harrison. It was the only real taste of war the honie folks had. 
Morgan spent only five days with us, but the visit was interesting 
and long remembered. 

The New Albany Ledger of Saturday and Monday gives 
the following items in reference to the raid of Morgan's 
band: 

The route of the rebels from Corydon to Salem was by 
way of Palmyra and rear of Greenville. Along the entire 
route they robbed and destroyed property indiscriminately. 
Of horses they took a large number, and were particular in 
their selections to take nothing but the best. Every house 
along the road was entered; and such of the contents as 
suited them the rebels took, destroying, in the most wan- 
ton manner, what was wholly useless to them. All black- 
smith tools and such other articles as could be of service 
to a pursuing force were carried away or destroyed. 

At Salem, after burning the depot, Morgan announced 
it as his intention to burn all the mills and factories in the 
town, and issued orders to that effect. He afterwards re- 
considered these orders and told the owners of such prop- 
erty that he would spare it upon the payment of nine thou- 
sand dollars for each mill and factory. These levies upon 
the citizens were responded to, and the money paid over to 
the freebooter chief. This alone saved the town from a 
conflagration which would have desolated it, as the build- 



4i6 Readings in Indiana History 

ings put under contribution were so located that had they 
been fired the conflagration would have been communicated 
by them to hundreds of other houses. 

At Palmyra a force of 350 or 400 '*Home Guards," un- 
der Gen. J. A. Cravens, our member of Congress, had con- 
centrated, having fallen back to that point from near 
Corydon. Prudently enough, considering their inability to 
even retard the approach of Morgan, they fell back from 
Palmyra to Salem. So sudden and unexpected was Mor- 
gan's entry into Salem that these home guards were made 
prisoners of war. They were afterwards paroled. The 
whole force, we learn, was mounted, and as the rebel chief 
is not celebrated for ever returning any of his stolen proper- 
ty in the line of horse flesh, the horses were carried off, to- 
gether with the equipment of the men, and are yet in the 
enemy's possession. 

Full license was given by Morgan to his men during 
their stay in Salem to rob and plunder to their heart 's con- 
tent. The clothing stores, dry-goods houses, boot and shoe 
stores, and liquor saloons were at once put into a state of 
most thorough and rapid depletion in the amount of their 
stocks. Old clothes were thrown away, and each gay and 
festive rebel donned a new attire and sported it with as 
much pride as a small boy would his first pair of pantaloons, 
Morgan meantime blandly informing the owners of the long- 
coveted ''spoils" that "such was life in a state of war." 
He further stated that he would long bear in grateful re- 
membrance the goodly town of Salem and its people, and 
as they had done so well by him and his, he would endeavor 
to call upon them again at the first convenient opportunity. 
His ragamuffins were particularly delighted with the style 
of Salem clothing and the quality of Salem whiskey. 

From Salem the rebels moved off to Canton, a post vil- 
lage in Washington county, four and a half miles east of 
Salem. Canton, and the country surrounding it, is settled 
by Quakers. Morgan had no doubt that as they were noncom- 
itant they ''would be delighted to see him." But espe- 
cially was he interested in the excellent quality of the equine 
productions of that fine region of country. He relieved the 



Indiana in thie Civil War 417 

good ''Friends" of their horseflesh to the number of over 
one hundred, and joining his left column with his right, 
which entered the town by way of Harristown, he moved off 
in the direction of Vienna, Scott county, on the line of the 
Jeffersonville railroad. 

138. Morgan's Raid: General Duke's Account 

(From A History of Morgan's Cavalry, by General Basil W. Duke [18G7], 

pp. 435-437.) 

Just before the crossing of the Ohio river was com- 
menced an unexpected fusillade was delivered from the In- 
diana shore upon the men who showed themselves in the 
little town and upon the boats, which was soon followed by 
the sharp report of a rifled cannon. The river at this point 
is some eight hundred or a thousand yards wide — and the 
musketry produced no effect. The shell, however, from the 
piece of artillery pitched into a group on the river bank, 
scattering it and wounding Captain Wilson, quartermaster 
of the First Brigade. The mist hanging thick over the river 
had prevented us from seeing the parties who directed this 
firing take position. Soon the mist was lifted or was dis- 
persed by the bright sun, and disclosed a squad of combat- 
ants posted behind one or two small houses, a clump of hay 
stacks and along the brink of the river on the other side. 

Apparently, from the mixture of uniform and plain 
clothes, which could be discovered by the glass, this force 
was composed of militia and some regular troops. Several 
shots were fired from the gun while we were getting our 
pieces in readiness to reply, but as soon as Lawrence opened 
upon them with his Parrots [rifled cannons], a manifest 
disposition to retire was seen among our friends who had 
shown themselves so anxious to give us a warm and early 
reception. They attempted to carry the piece of artillery 
off with them, but were induced by Lawrence to relinquish 
it. It was mounted upon the wheels of a wagon from which 
the body had been removed, and transportation was diffi- 
cult and tedious and very disagreeable under fire. 

The First Brigade encamped that night about six miles 
from the river. "A great fear" had fallen upon the in- 

27—1643 



41 8 Readings in Indiana History 

habitants of that part of the State of Indiana. They had 
left their houses with open doors and unlocked larders, and 
had fled to the thickets and ''caves of the hills." At the 
houses at which I stopped everything was just in the condi- 
tion in which the fugitive owners had left it an hour or two 
before. A bright fire was blazing upon the kitchen hearth, 
bread half made up was in the tray, and many indications 
convinced us that we had interrupted preparations for sup- 
per. The chickens were strolling before the door with a 
confidence that was touching, but misplaced. General Mor- 
gan rode by soon afterward and was induced to "stop all 
night. ' ' We completed the preparations so suddenly aban- 
doned and made the best show for Indiana hospitality that 
was possible under the disturbing circumstances. 

Passing through Corydon, w^e took the Salem road and 
encamped some sixteen or eighteen miles from the latter 
place. On the morning of the 10th we set out for Salem. 
Major Webber was ordered to take the advance, and let 
nothing stop him. He accordingly put his regiment at the 
head of the column and struck out briskly. Lieutenant 
Welsh, of Company K, had the extreme advance with twelve 
men. As he neared Salem he saw the enemy forming to 
receive him, and, without hesitation, dashed in among them. 
The party he attacked was about one hundred and fifty 
strong, but badly armed and perfectly raw, and he quickly 
routed them. He pursued as they fled and soon, supported 
by Captain W. J. Jones ' company, drove them pellmell into 
the town. Here some two or three hundred were collected, 
but as the Second Kentucky came pouring upon them, they 
fled in haste, scattering their guns in the streets. 

A small swivel, used by the younger population of Salem 
to celebrate Christmas and the Fourth of July, had been 
planted to receive us ; about eighteen inches long, it was 
loaded to the nmzzle and mounted in the public square by 
being propped against a stick of firewood. It was not fired, 
however, for the man deputed to perform that important 
duty, somewhat astounded by the sudden dash into the town, 
dropped the coal of fire with which he should have touched 
it off, and l)efore he could get another the rebels captured 



Indiana in the Civil War 419 

the piece. The shuddering imagination refuses to contem- 
plate the consequences had that swivel been touched off. 

Major Webber might have had some trouble with this 
force, which was being rapidly augmented, but for the 
promptness and vigor of his attack. 

A short halt was made in Salem to feed men and horses, 
and during that time several railroad bridges were burned. 
The provost guard had great difficulty in restraining 'the 
men from pillaging, and was unsuccessful in some instances. 
Major Steele, of the Third Kentucky, had been appointed 
Provost Marshal of the division, and was assisted by picked 
officers and men from each of the brigades. Major Steele 
was a most resolute, vigilant, energetic officer, and yet he 
found it impossible to stop a practice which neither com- 
pany nor regimental officers were able to aid him in sup- 
pressing. 

This disposition for wholesale plunder exceeded any- 
thing that any of us had ever seen before. The men seemed 
actuated by a desire to ''pay off" in the "enemy's country" 
all scores that the Federal army had chalked up in the 
South. The great cause for apprehension, which our sit- 
uation might have inspired, seemed only to make them reck- 
less. Calico was the staple article of appropriation — each 
man (who could get one) tied a bolt of it to his saddle, only 
to throw it away and get a fresh one at thefirst opportunity. 
They did not pillage with any sort of method or reason — it 
seemed to be a mania, senseless and purposeless. One man 
carried a bird-cage, with three canaries in it, for two days. 
Another rode with a chafing-dish, which looked like a small 
metallic coffin, on the pommel of his saddle until an officer 
forced him to throw it away. Although the weather was 
intensely warm, another still slung seven pairs of skates 
around his neck and chuckled over his acquisition. 

I saw very few articles of real value taken — they pil- 
laged like boys robbing an orchard. I would not have be- 
lieved that such a passion could have been developed, so 
ludicrously, among any body of civilized men. At Piketon, 
Ohio, some days later, one man broke through the guard 
posted at a store, rushed in (trembling with excitement and 



420 Readings in Indiana History 

avarice) and filled his pockets with horn buttons. They 
would (with few exceptions) throw away their plunder after 
awhile, like children tired of their toys. 

139. Indiana Volunteers: A Raw Recruit 

(From the Indianapolis Daily Journal, April 23, 1861.) 

The Richmond Broad Axe tells a capital story of a young 
volunteer at that place. On Wednesday afternoon a real 
wiry looking chap about 16 years of age presented himself 
at 'Squire Lyle's office and stated that he had w^alked fifteen 
miles to " jine" the company, and wished to enlist for a term 
extending "clean through the war." He was told that he 
was young, and perhaps had not a correct idea of what was 
expected of a soldier. "Look a-here," said he, "I can hit 
a squirrel's head every crack, and when it comes to shootin' 
traitors, I calculate to make a full hand. I know all about 
campin' out and drinkin' coffee out of a tin cup; and when 
it comes to marchin', if I can't keep up then it will be time 
enough to kick me to one side. ' ' 

The little fellow was told that he was "clear grit" and 
that if his parents were willing, he should go with the com- 
pany. He footed it back home again, got the consent of the 
"old folks," and at 8 o'clock Thursday morning he again 
made his appearance, accompanied by four young men of 
his neighborhood, who all enlisted. 



CHAPTER XXVIII 

CA]\IP LIFE OF THE VOLUNTEERS 

A few of the Indiana soldiers had seen service in the Mexican 
war and thus had some idea of what a soldier's life was like. But 
the larger part had no idea of military service. Thousands of 
them left home loaded down with all the useless articles they and 
their friends could think of. They soon found most of these use- 
less. Tlieir experiences in camp, on the march, and in battle were 
written home. These letters give us the best possible idea of the 
real Civil War. The following selections are given in the hope that 
they will portray this human side of war. 

140. lictter from Camp Wallace: Camp Life 

(From Indianapolis Journal, May 20, 1861.) 

Camp Wal,lace, neah Evansville, May 21, 1861. 

Deae Journal — As you were a constant visitor and 
companion of mine during my stay in Indianapolis, I can 
not refrain from conversing with you by means of paper, 
ink and pen during my absence. On our arrival here we 
were marched to Camp Morris, where we pitched our tents 
and felt very well satisfied until the next day. It then com- 
menced raining, and continued to do so for several days, in 
consequence of which the ground became perfectly swampy, 
to such an extent that we were in the water to our ankles 
nearly all the time. This was a rather hard test to keep up 
the good humor of the boys, yet I have heard very few com- 
plain about it. 

Several exciting incidents which occurred there will 
make the place long remembered by the boys. On the first 
night, after having been in bed about an hour, and being 
just in the act of resigning our souls into the hands of Mor- 
pheus, we heard a quick alarm sounded on the bugle, which 
called us into ranks, and in less than three minutes the whole 
regiment was formed. Our officers spoke together in a 

(421) 



422 Readings in Indiana History 

mysterious manner, and as liglits were seen passing to 
and fro on tlie Kentucky shore, the boys came to the con- 
clusion that we were to be attacked. I have taken particu- 
lar pains to find out their different feelings and with pride 
I can say that they were all anxious to lay down their lives 
for their country. 

To the general disappointment, this was only a ma- 
neuver of our colonel to get us used to such emergencies. 
A few nights afterwards we were called out of our beds 
again, but this time only two companies were detached from 
the regiment for the purpose of capturing a steamboat on 
Green river, said to be loaded with provisions and muni- 
tions of war for the South. They took their departure from 
camp in "double quick time," with Lieut.-Col. McGinnis at 
their head, while a heavy shower poured down on the brave 
fellows. The result, I suppose, you have heard, and I need 
not mention anything more about it, only that the companies 
returned about noon the next day saturated with water. 

On the 15th we exchanged Camp Morris for Camp Wal- 
lace. The latter is a most beautiful and romantic looking 
spot. Tall shade trees with entwining foliage are spread- 
ing their jjrotective arms over our tents, and shelter us from 
the hot rays of the sun. The Ohio river, with its silvery 
waves, rolls at our feet, and distributes a refreshing breeze 
through the camp. We have a view of the river three miles 
either way, and the city of Evansville can also be distinctly 
discerned. It is just such a spot that a poet would long for 
to give free scope to his ideas. 

The whole regiment is in excellent health, and also in 
good humor. In the daytime the camp looks like a beehive. 
The boys are attending to their various vocations, such as 
cooking, drilling, cleaning guns and mending wearing ap- 
parel. In the evening the scene changes, and about dark 
you can see groups stationed together, telling each other of 
their beloved homes, while happiness brightens their 
bronzed faces, and tears of sweet remembrance trickle 
down the cheeks of some; others who have no such happy 
homes to think of amuse themselves by singing, playing 
some instrument, dancing and the like. At dark the whole 



Camp Life of the Volunteer^ 4.2^ 

camp assumes an air of mysteriousness. A picket guard is 
then stationed about a lialf mile from the camp, and the in- 
side sentinels are instructed to allow nobody to approach 
them by fifteen paces until they have made themselves 
known, and also to shoot down anyone who does not halt 
when that command is given the third time. By this you 
can see that we are brought up to the regular United States 
military discipline. 

141. A Soldier's Hardships in Virginia 

(From the Indianapolis Dailii Jounidl. January 1, 1862.) 

Camp Gavin, Spkingfield, Va., 

December 24th, 1861. 
Editor Journal : 

It has been so long since I have had the pleasure of see- 
ing and perusing one of our home papers that I do not know 
that it is generally known by our friends at home where we 
are, or what we have been doing. By your permission I 
will try to inform them. For some time we have been roam- 
ing, and often could have been heard to exclaim, like one of 
old, "The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have 
nests," but we poor soldiers have not where to lay our 
heads. Many long, cold nights have passed away, while we 
were shivering in an open hog car, or on the damp ground 
in the open air, a cold December wind whistling around us, 
and the lustre of the pale moon stealing about our resting- 
I)laces. Our mission was to reopen the Baltimore & Ohio 
Railroad, replace the track, put up the telegraph wire, which 
had been torn up, burned and destroyed by the conspiring 
rebels of the South. 

We began our work at Green Spring Station, worked our 
way to Sleepy creek, five miles below Hancock — a distance 
from Green Springs of forty-eight miles — and on Monday, 
the 16th, a train ran down to Hancock, being the first that 
has passed over this part of the road since the 27tli of May. 
We worked five days on the bridge over Great Caccabon. 
At this station we established a telegraph office, also one at 
Hancock, We found the wire cut in many places, and the 



424 Readings in Indiana History 

poles were cut down. Watering stations were burned and 
the machinery destroyed. At Sleepy creek another bridge 
was destroyed; when that is built the road is passable to 
Cherry creek, which, by referring to Perrine's military map, 
may be easily found. From Cherry Run towards Martins- 
burg the road track for fourteen miles is all gone. The 
damage done to this road by the rebels can hardly be esti- 
mated. 

On Tuesday, the 17tli inst., we were ordered to Green 
Spring, where we arrived that evening at 7 o'clock. 
Wednesday noon we marched to Springfield, on the Rom- 
ney pike, distant from Green Spring eight miles. Arriving 
at this place, we selected a nice meadow in the edge of town 
for our camping ground and pitched our tents. We find it 
a pleasnat place to camp. Sju-ingfield is a pretty village, neat 
and clean, full of ''secesh" ladies and their slaves, with 
only two Union families in the town, and they look at us 
cross-eyed. I don't think they will do to trust outside the 
pickets. All the men who in former days promenaded the 
streets of this beautiful village with standing collars and 
''secesh" plumes are now in the rebel army, undergoing the 
same hardships that we are. I am told by a young lady 
whose lover is in the army that there has been a mail three 
times a week from here to Winchester until our regiment, 
the 7tli, came here, notwithstanding there were some Mary- 
land troops and two or three companies of cavalry here, and 
within the last two weeks, I am told, there have been nine 
barrels of salt sent from this town to Winchester. 

They have been doing as they pleased so long that even 
after we came here we had to threaten the town before they 
would heed our coming. Col. Givin took the chair as com- 
mander of the post, and to-day there is quite a change of 
affairs in this part of the rebel kingdom. The old citizens 
think it very cruel that they have to ride four miles to get 
a pass to go to a mill only half a mile off. Well, it may look 
so to them, but it is my opinion that some of them will get 
a free ride to Columbus [Ohio], or to the imseen world, if 
they are caught outside the narrow path. The Colonel is 
bringing them to the rules of the army at once, and by the 



Camp Life of the Volunteers 42^ 

time they get through with him they will find out that this 
war it not mere child's play. A patrol guard is kept out on 
the streets, and the town and vicinity are kept under strict 
military rules, and these rules are complied with to the let- 
ter or the offender is arrested and jailed. We have had 
nice weather for this time of the year, until last Sunday, 
when it began raining and turned cold. To-day the ground 
is covered with sleet and snow, the wind is madly howling 
around our tents, and, to say the least of it, it is very cold. 
The boys fill their camp kettles with fire and hang them on 
poles in the tent to keep from freezing. Our stoves will be 
here tomorrow. We have put floors in our tents, and when 
the stoves are once up we can keep warm. The roads here 
are very good, and before the rain the other day were quite 
dusty. 

142. The Affair at Romney 

(From the Indianapolis Dailij Journal, June 18, 1861; soldier's letter.) 
Romney, the county seat of Hampshire County, Virg^inia, is 
situated on the south branch of the Potomac. Near Mill Creek, 
just outside of Romney, an Indiana regiment under Colonel Wal- 
lace attacked a small force of Confederates in camp. The enemy 
retired, abandoning their tents, uniforms, arms, and so on. Some 
prisoners were taken by the attacking part with a small loss on 
both sides. The following letter was written home after the af- 
fair by Andrew Graydon to his father, Alexander Gray don, at 
Indianapolis : 

Friday, June 14, 1861. 

I had to stop this letter off short on Tuesday evening. 
While I was sitting under a tree writing the cry came, ' ' Fall 
in. Grays, under arms," and in about fifteen minutes every 
man was in his place, though we didn 't know where we were 
going, although there was a report earlier in the evening 
that we would probably be called out to go and attack a se- 
cession camp. Captain Foster asked if there were any men 
who thought they could not stand a tramp of fifteen miles, 
but there was not a man. We started off in a little while and 
marched down to the railroad, where there was a train of 
freight cars waiting for us. We piled in and in about an 
hour were off. 



426 Readings in Indiana History 

We went right out to the bridge which I spoke of before, 
and from there we had to march to the secession camp. None 
of us knew how far it was, not even the Colonel, but sup- 
posed that it was about eight or nine miles, but instead of 
that we found it twenty-five long miles, over the roughest 
roads we could imagine, first up a mountain three or four 
miles, and then down again, then through creeks tw^o or 
three feet deep. We left the bridge at about 11 o'clock at 
night and arrived at the town of Eomney, where the enemy 
were encamped, about 7 o'clock in the morning, only stop- 
ping to rest two or three times about fifteen minutes. 

Just as we were going along the side of a mountain about 
two miles from the town, our picket, who was about one 
hundred yards ahead, was fired upon by some twenty-five 
men hid amongst the bushes on the side of the mountain. 
Immediately the Grays rushed forward and tried their best 
to find some of the scoundrels. Only a few^ could be found, 
who were fired upon, and I suppose shot, although we did 
not stop to find out, but made our way on towards the town. 
About a hundred yards ahead we had a long bridge to cross, 
and just as the picket got to the other end they were fired 
upon by some men hid in a large brick house. The Grays 
were called upon to come forward again. When w^e got to 
the end of the bridge they fired upon us again. We an- 
swered them by firing fifteen or twenty shots. This time 
our orderly-sergeant. Grooms, dropped his gun and ran 
back into the bridge with his hand on his breast, saying he 
was shot, but he wasn 't hurt very bad, the ball having struck 
the ground first, then bounced and struck the buckle of his 
suspender, wdiich, the doctor said, saved his life. The Grays 
were then ordered to charge on the brick house, but by this 
time the men had left the brick house and made for the 
woods. We broke into it and found that we had come at 
just about the right time, for the folks were just about sit- 
ting down to breakfast, and got up and left us a good break- 
fast. 

The Grays were ordered to take charge of the house, and 
one company was left on the bridge, while the other six com- 



Camp Life of the Volunteers 427 

panies (for we only had parts of eigiit companies) were or- 
dered to make for the town, but by the time they got there 
not a man,woman or child was to be found. Everybody had 
taken to their heels and gone to the woods. The rebels had 
two pieces of cannon, to each of which they put four horses, 
and made some of the best time on record. Although we got 
everything they left behind them, yet we were not satisfied 
with the way they ran, for we w^anted to get a chance to 
shoot some of them. We may possibly have killed two or 
three on the side of the mountain, and wounded some of 
them in the houses, but we don't know for sure. One man 
was shot by one of our men, but our doctor took the ball out 
of him. 

The boys who went uptown got everything they could — 
in fact, all that was there — half a dozen tents, several boxes 
of ammunition, clothing, etc., also a lot of rifles, some half- 
dozen horses and saddles — well, we had four wagon loads 
of stuff. We took about a dozen prisoners, and brought 
some darkies along to take the wagons back, for we hired 
them of some of the farmers. We didn't pretend to touch 
any of the citizens that kept still, although they all ran out 
of the town. 

The town is a county seat with four or five thousand in- 
habitants, and every one left. We heard just now that we 
killed three or four, but will know in a day or two for sure. 
But the 11th Kegiment, or what there was of us (about 
three-fourths of the regiment) did our part. We left our 
camp at 8 o'clock on Tuesday morning, traveled twenty 
miles by railroad, then marched tw^enty-five miles over the 
mountains, cleaned out a town of four thousand inhabitants 
and five hundred soldiers, took some prisoners and a lot of 
baggage and horses, started back, and marched the twenty- 
five miles over again and the twenty by railroad, and got 
into camp by 4 o'clock Thursday morning — all inside of 
thirty-two hours, and we would have done better than that 
if they hadn't run. We would have killed fifty or sixty and 
brought as many prisoners. 



428 Readings in Indiana History 

143. Scenes Around Corinth 

(From the Iiidianaijolis Dailij Journal, May 24, 1862; soldier's letter.) 

It is not safe to venture within our lines here, as the 
rebel cavalry and rebel citizens are apt to shoot at you if 
they have a fair chance to do so without danger to them- 
selves. Several of our men, straggling beyond the pickets, 
have been shot or captured. I have ventured but once, but 
found everything bearing the mark of the red hoof of war. 
The houses of the natives are generally miserable cabins; 
their fences are all gone, and their fields of grain are tram- 
pled down and many of them are unploughed and covered 
with weeds. The rebel armies have wickedly and cruelly 
destroyed all of their cotton, except what the poor natives 
could succeed in smuggling to some hiding-place, and what 
this wretched people are to do, or how they are to sustain 
existence, which is about all they aspire to, is more than I 
can answer. The men and women are only half clad, in the 
poorest and dirtiest of apparel, and seem to be imperfectly 
developed, both mentally and physically. The women smoke 
and chew and the English of their ordinary colloquialism 
would puzzle any ''Yankee." They, of course, are what 
are called by the niggers the "poor white folks," but in this 
direction I have seen but few of any other class. If such 
as these constitute any considerable portion of the rebel 
army, they are an element of weakness rather than of 
strength to that army. Moreover, they are objects of pity, 
not of hatred. 

The additional assistant surgeons sent out by Governor 
Morton to lend a helping hand in administering to the wants 
of the sick and wounded soldiers, or at least some of them, 
are already beginning to withdraw from the field. They 
came to us full of ardor and expecting to step from the 
boat to 

Where waving plumes were like sea foam tossed, 
And the turf wore a gory stain, 

making no doubt but that General Halleck would bring on a 
general engagement as soon as he heard that the additional 
corps had arrived, each armed with every instrument of 



Camp Life of the Volunteers 429 

torture known to modern surgery. For a few days visions 
of amputated limbs, reset joints, trepanned heads, etc., etc., 
doubtless danced and played before their artless imagina- 
tions, giving life and vigor to their movements and acting 
as a tonic upon their animal spirits. 

But, alas ! what is man? What is man? In a very few 
days peace and quiet were reigning, instead of the shock 
and din of war, in a few days low diet and the depletion 
necessarily resulting from the active operations of numer- 
ous overgrown ''wood ticks," as well as the ennui arising 
from the dull routine of camp life, and the daily and unceas- 
ing administering of opium and quinine, instead of slash- 
ing at arms and legs, began to produce their legitimate ef- 
fects upon a portion of this reserve corps of M. D. 's. They 
began to wilt, to succumb, to "give in," to "play out," 
doubtless singing in their hearts — 

Carry me back, carry me back. 
To Indiana's shore ! 

144. On Scout Duty 

(From the Indianapolis Dailij Sentinel, September 21, 1861.) 

Camp Elkwater, Randolph County, Va., 

September 13, 1861. 

Mr. Editor: In accordance with my promise, I will 
continue my narrative of the doings of my regiment since 
I last wrote you. On last Saturday at half past eight, a. m., 
we left Cheat Mountain Pass and marched up to our present 
position by twelve o 'clock, m. ; and after noon we went up 
ten miles farther and relieved the fifteenth Indiana. The 
last ten miles was very hard working, indeed, and I had the 
full benefit of a horrid road, as I was on foot ; the road was 
for eight miles all the way from six inches to eighteen 
inches deep in mud, and we had to wade a creek in that dis- 
tance thirty-two times — the creek was from one to two and 
a half feet deep — and, of course, we were all the time wet 
and muddy. We got there just at dark, and as we had no 
tents at all, we officers, as well as men, fared very badly at 
night. The place we camped at is one and one-quarter 



430 Readings in Indiana History 

miles from tlie secession pickets in front of Lee 's army. We 
stationed our pickets early on Sunday morning and ex- 
tended about five miles. It took me all day to go from one 
to the other and examine all of the surrounding country. 
Nothing of any consequence happened on Sunday. 

Early on Monday morning the Colonel said he wanted to 
find out if there was a road over in front of him where he 
saw secession troops passing; so I took one good man with 
me and my rifle and started; I found where their pickets 
were stationed ; and, passing through the woods on a moun- 
tain between the pickets, we went about three miles inside 
of their lines, and, finding no road, commenced our return 
to camp ; when near their line we were discovered by their 
pickets and fired on, but without effect. There was only 
two of them, so we put after them without firing, and ran 
them about a mile, but they got away from us, and we came 
into camp, and I made my report accordingly. 

On Tuesday morning the Colonel wanted to know how 
strong their nearest picket was, and see if he could not cap- 
ture it. So he sent me to see if I could find out. I took 
my route over a very high mountain, thickly lined with tan- 
gled laurel, and on another mountain to their rear, and got 
right over their picket. I was on the side of the mountain, 
behind some small bushes, and saw eight of them playing 
cards, and was so close to them that I could tell the color on 
their cards. I lit my pipe and took a smoke until they were 
relieved, and then was able to see their strength ; after tak- 
ing notice of the surrounding country, I made my way back 
to camp and reported. 

On Wednesday morning the Colonel sent me, with six 
men, to ascertain if there was a road and mill off to our 
right, so I started about eight o 'clock in a heavy rain, and 
in about two and a half miles passed their pickets without 
their discovering us, and we actually went eight miles in- 
side their lines, right through on the side of a range of 
mountains without discovery; but it rained very hard al- 
most all the time, and, in coming back, I took another route 
right over the mountains and came very near getting lost in 
the mountains inside of their pickets, but we got through 



Camp Life of the Volunteers 431 

without being discovered after traveling as much as twenty 
miles, and when we got where we liad left the regiment 
it was gone, and it was just dark tlicn, and I saw, from i:he 
condition of things, that the regiment had left in a hnrry; 
so there we were, as wet as rats, nothing to eat since break- 
fast and ten miles from the nearest camp, and it was jnst 
getting dark and raining like everything ; but we went dowm 
the road about two miles and went up a piece in the woods 
and stopped until morning; and, oh, I tell you it poured 
down on us that night good and strong, and we had nothing 
but our oilcloths for protection, nothing to eat at all, and 
only six of us there. Well, we each took a tree and stood 
up beside it until morning, cold, wet. and hungry, and 
as soon as daylight came we started for camp, eight 
miles, all the way through deeii mud and crossing those 
thirty-two creek crossings. We got to camp about nine 
o'clock, a. m,, and I tell you 1 was ylad to get hold of a cup 
of coffee and some of Uncle Sam's hard bread. 

145. On the Firing-Line — At Antietani 

(From A Hintonj of the Tircntif-scrcnth Iii'liaiKi, by E. R. Bkowk [189!»|. 

pp. 237-251.) 

The battle of Antietam derived its name from the creek 
along which, both before and during the battle, the Union 
lines were dra^\Ti. The rebels called it the battle of Sharps- 
burg, that village being immediately in the rear of their 
lines. Sharpsburg is fifteen miles up the Potomac river 
from Harper's Ferry, on the Maryland side. 

For about four miles from where the Antietam empties 
into the Potomac its banks are high and steep. At that 
point, owing to a bend in the Potomac, the creek and river 
are less than two miles apart. Across that narrow neck 
the rebel leader established his lines of battle, resting one 
flank on the creek and the other near the river. It was nat- 
urally a strong position, with sunken roads, rocky ledges 
and stout post and rail fences to serve as protection for his 
men, and numerous knolls, ridges and patches of woodland, 
behind which to conceal his movements, 



432 Readings in Indiana History 

As the Union army faced its adversary, tlie ground in 
front of its left wing was broken and rough. At its extreme 
left, the creek itself was deep enough to be a serious barrier, 
and had to be crossed under the enemy's fire. A little more 
towards its right, the crossing was not opposed, but, once 
over, the contest had to be waged where there were steep 
acclivities and deep ravines. At almost the extreme right 
of the Union Army, however, the fighting was done in wide, 
gently undulating fields, with narrow strips, or small 
patches of woodland intervening. The interest of this nar- 
rative centers upon the latter part of the battle-ground. 

Authorities, and memories as well, differ as to the time 
when the Twenty-seventh, with the other regiments of the 
brigade, left its position near the Pry house, east of the 
creek. It is not very important. It was in the night, after 
the camp had been wrapped in slumber. 

The awakening was not by the usual method of squeak- 
ing fife and rattling drum. On the contrary, officers went 
to the low tents of the men and, stooping down, called in 
subdued tones. All fires or lights were x)rohibited and or- 
ders were stringent against noises of any kind. Packing up 
quickly, the column moved stealthily in the murky dark- 
ness. No conversation, except in whispers, being per- 
mitted, there was nothing to do, but each to follow his file 
leader and meditate upon the situation. 

When the firing begins, the regiments of our brigade 
fall into ranks, and the Twenty-seventh mai'ches forward 
to Mr. Melikoff 's log barn, only a few rods. The regiment 
is then thrown into columns of divisions, close order, arms 
are stacked, and the command given : ' ' Rest at will ! ' ' We 
are now ready for any order that may come. 

While we wait, many of our men pour water out of their 
canteens into their little tin pails, and make themselves a 
cup of coffee, over the small fires we have been permitted 
to kindle since daylight. With this black coffee and the 
crackers and raw pork in their haversacks, they eat a sol- 
dier's luncheon. It seems certain that we must very soon 
join in the battle. Few, if any, can forget that this may 
be the last food that they will taste in this world, or the last 



Camp Life of the Volunteers 433 

as well men. In fact, for that reason, some of the more ex- 
citable ones cannot eat a mouthful. Others, not overbur- 
dened with sentiment, banteringly allege that they intend to 
eat all the more on that account. 

We move straight toward the firing in front. At one 
point only the Twenty-seventh obliques to the right, to 
avoid what in Indiana we call a buttonwood pond. With 
this exception our line, from the starting point to where 
we halt and open fire, is practically straight. 

When we arrive at the top of the slope we find ourselves 
on the edge of a rather smooth and level tract of table land, 
extending on before us for more than half a mile. Advanc- 
ing on, we came to a narrow strip of open timber, extending 
back from Mr. Poifenberfer's barn. Just before entering 
this timber we encountered two stake-and-rider fences bor- 
dering a narrow lane. To push these down sufficiently for us 
to scramble over them is only the work of a moment. But 
it breaks our formation somewhat and, once among the big 
trees, we halt and readjust our ranks. In the pause we can 
hear a peculiar singing, humming noise in the tree tops. 
Looking up the air seems to be in motion, only there is no 
movement among the limbs. Twigs and shredded leaves 
are sifted down as if an army of locusts was at work in this 
grove. It is canister and shrapnel hurled at the troops in 
front and at us in tons, by the rebel batteries. Massed as we 
are, we afford them a tempting mark, though their aim is 
too high. 

We are standing out in perfectly open ground. Not as 
much as a frail spear of grass shields anyone, from the 
crown of his head to the sole of his feet. All stand per- 
fectly erect. From first to last not a man lies down, kneels 
or stoops unless he is hurt. Moreover, we touch elbows 
constantly. As fast as men fall we close up the gaps, pre- 
senting at all times an unbroken front. The file-closers 
have work to do, and they do it well. There is a continu- 
ous shouting of "Close up! Close up!" 

How long this continues will never be known precisely. 
Col. Colgrove says in his report, "It must have been more 
than two hours." He stated in after years that we were 

28—1643 



434 Readings in Indiana History 

under fire at Antietam two hours and forty minutes. Suf- 
fice it to say, to us it seemed an age. We have fired as 
high as eighty, ninety, and even one hundred rounds each. 
Many of our muskets have become so foul that we can no 
longer ram a ball down them, and we have exchanged them 
for those dropped by the killed and wounded. In other 
cases muskets have been exchanged because tliey were so 
hot that we were afraid to load them. For some time offi- 
cers and others have been gathering cartridges from those 
hurt and distributing them to those who remain. It seems 
a miracle that anyone should still remain unhurt. Very few, 
indeed, are entirely so. There is scarcely a man on whom 
blood has not been drawn in some way. 

It requires something more than a scratch to send men 
to the rear, A man in one of the companies — a typical 
Hoosier, tall, gaunt, and slow-spoken, but every inch a hero 
— is desperately wounded. He lays his gun down and goes 
to the rear a short distance and calmly investigates. At 
length he says in this drawling way: "Wall, I guess I'm 
hurt about as bad as I can be. I believe I'll go back and 
give 'em some more. ' ' So he does. He walks slowly back, 
picks up ]]is gun and continues to load and fire. In another 
case a man is mortally vsounded and lying on the ground, 
ex]30sed to further injury, but refuses the offer of his own 
brother to remove him to a place of safety. He bids him, 
rather, to remain where he is more needed. 

At length the piercing tones of Col. Colgrove 's voice are 
again heard. The command is : " Fix bayonets ! " As we 
are in the act of doing this we see our antagonists rise up 
and move briskly away, without any regard to order. We, 
of course, go wild with joy, and begin to cheer with all our 
might. Simultaneous with our cheers, we hear cheering 
both to our right and left. A glance shows us that, on our 
right, the Second Massachusetts has swung around, past 
Miller's house, and is moving into the cornfield. On our 
left, troops of our second division have come through the 
woods and are now charging into the open ground, in splen- 
did style. Leading them quite a distance, we recognize our 
grizzled friend from Williamsport^ Gen, Green. Bare- 



Camp Life of the Volunteers 435 

headed, with drawn sword, and horse at a stiff trot, his was 
a figure to remember. 

At the connnand, our line moves forward. Down the 
modest slope to the tragic fence, over that and on, between 
the bloody corn rows, with their cut and hackled cornstalks, 
advancing our left as we go, we do fiot halt until near the 
strong post-and-rail fence, bordering the turnpike. The 
enemy have leaped this fence and escaped into the timber 
beyond. This ])ractieally terminates our figliting for the 
day. 

146. On the March 

(From the Indianapolis Journal, March IS. 1864.) 

Wauhatchie Junction^ Lookout Valley, 

March 12th, 1864. 

On Wednesday morning, the 12tli ult., a beautiful, spark- 
ling day, the First Brigade, First Division, Eleventh Army 
Corps — the Seventieth Indiana, Seventy-ninth Ohio, One 
Hundred and Second and One Hundred and Fifth Illinois — 
for six months stationed at Nashville, with colors flying and 
drums beating, turned their back on the city, and faced to 
the "front" to assist their brethren in teaching the rebel- 
lious South that the way of the traitor is hard. The bri- 
gade was in command of Colonel Ben Harrison, of the Sev- 
entieth Indiana, wliile the march was conducted bv Briga- 
dier-General Wood, commanding division. 

At Murfreesboro, which was reached on the 26th, the 
One Hundred and Second Illinois, six companies mounted, 
which for a long time had been stationed at Stewart Creek, 
joined us, and the brigade, five large regiments strong, was 
complete. Fortunately the weather was propitious, and in 
consequence of rain we were compelled to lay up but a day 
and a half. We reached our present position on the even- 
ing of the 10th inst., making six days from Nashville. 

A more successful and better managed mavcli, so far as 
Colonel Harrison was concerned, I venture to say, has not 
been executed since the beginning of the war, and great 
credit is due him for the ability and energy he brought to 
bear in expediting the movement. As T have not hesitated 



436 Readings in Indiana History 

on former occasions to condemn inhuman and badly man- 
aged marches, I now take pleasure in recording this as a 
well conducted one. Our march was unattended with strag- 
gling, and although a portion of the road was awful, but few 
mules were lost, which, taken' in connection with the fact 
that in thirteen days q^d a half, the distance of about one 
hundred and sixty miles was made, crossing through the 
mountains, over mountain roads, is the best evidence of the 
manner in which things were conducted. The men at the 
end of the march, although a little fatigued, were ready for 
duty; never did men endure the difficulties incident to so 
long a tramp with greater fortitude, indeed, I may say, 
cheerfulness. 

The route from Nashville through Lavergne, Murfrees- 
boro to Shelbyville was over excellent pikes, and no diffi- 
culty was experienced in marching or keeping the immense 
train of 150 wagons and ambulances well closed up. At 
the latter place we went in to the left of the pike, crossing 
Duck River, and commenced a rough experience over a mili- 
tary road. Have you any idea of a military road? I fear 
but a very limited one, unless youVe ''been there." As is 
generally thought, the road is crooked, up and down the 
hills, round about, through swamps, creeks and ravines, 
over cliffs and ledges, meadows and fields, and is generally 
macadamized with saplings, huge logs, rails, rocks, dead 
mules and horses, old skeletons of wagons and every other 
material at hand. 

At last after several days of rain and mud, the sun ap- 
peared, and having no guide to undertake the novel and 
wearisome trip of climbing a mountain over an obscure road 
or trail, our old General, who is always wise, when not oth- 
erwise, determined, instead of sending forward pioneers for 
observation, to hunt the road himself, and as there used to 
be a good many "Southern Confederacies" in these parts, 
he concluded to take his whole brigade on the reconnois- 
sance. Like Gen. Lee in his celebrated invasion of Penn- 
sylvania, he also concluded to take his ''base" with him. 
Certainly if one guide had formerly been sufficient, such a 



Camp Life of the Volunteers 437 

crowd of men, armed and equipped, with haversacks and 
knapsacks, etc., could find the road to Tantallon. 

On we go through gullies, over ridges, tremendous, steep, 
immense piles of immense rocks, through the woods, up one 
cliff', down another, notice a pile of bleached bones ; must be 
near the road ; wise ones exclaim Eureka ! but where is the 
road? On we go, thundering, thrashing, rattling, stum- 
bling and tearing pell-mell, over stupendous obstacles, 
amid the greatest noise, until a cloud of smoke and ominous 
smell of sulphur causes the old veteran to stop, thinking 
the first brigade had invaded the infernal regions. 

Galloping ahead he discovered a wild-looking individual 
protruding his head, with a lighted lamp fastened upon a 
skull cap, out of a dark hole. Asking what place it was, he 
was told that it was no place in " p'ertickler, a kind 0' 
jumpin' off place." Not wishing to jump off just yet, the 
General, upon further inquiry, ascertained that he had run 
the first brigade into the ground, or into the coal mines of 
Tracy City, which is no city at all, that he was past the road 
he wanted to find several miles. Here was a pretty pickle. 
The General unslung his leather canteen ; coal heaver never 
drank, but his comrades did. Just then a hundred illumi- 
nated heads dropped out of their holes. Nothing abashed, 
the General coolly remarked that some of his own comrades 
were addicted to the same bad habit, and slung his canteen ; 
a ''sharp" for the General; but he was puzzled; singular 
that such a great crowd of men, mules and horses could not 
find a road. How could he get his brigade and his ''base" 
back! He soon bethought himself of a precedent; with an 
air of satisfaction he faced about, muttering, "The King 
of France with forty thousand men, marched up a hill, and 
then marched down again." He hesitated; he didn't have 
the forty thousand men; but then his majesty did not ap- 
pear to have had his "base" with him, and that would off- 
set the difference in men ; the cases were not altogether dis- 
similar ; the military combinations would be similar ; so he 
started his brigade to the right, down the precipitous moun- 
tain to hunt the road, some of them rolling, tumbling, run- 



438 Readings in Indiana History 

ning and straggling for a mile or so tlirougli the woods, 
until tlie trail was accidentally strnck; liis ''base" went 
piling back over the track it had passed, as nearly as they 
could guess, for several hours, until a mule driver found 
the track by discovering a dead mule ; once on the track the 
General triumphantly exclaimed, "There, I knew the First 
Brigade could find the road ; talk to me of your guides ; they 
are a nuisance; and then, what a rich experience we have 
had ; the men need just such experience to get used to war ' ' ; 
and the old chap was so elated that he commenced fumbling 
with his canteen again. 



CHAPTER XXIX 

INDIANA AND THE FREEDMEN 

Hardly had the war opened when the problem of dealing with 
the colored people came up in Indiana. There were a few colored 
persons already in the State and many more crossed over from 
Kentucky during the first years of the War. A goodly number of 
these joined the army and did creditable service. The following 
selections show how these liberated people adjusted themselves to 
free society. 

147. Negro Soldiers 

(From the Indianapolis Journal, A]tril ID, 1S(;4.) 

As the war dragged on, both sides began to feel exhaustion, 
and resorted to enlistment of negroes as soldiers. The following 
document is taken from a news-letter, written for the Journal, by 
its correspondent from Lookout Valley, Tennessee : 

I took occasion while tliere to call on Col. Morgan, com- 
mander of the negro trooj^s in this department, formerly 
1st Lieutenant of Company I, 80th Indiana. The Colonel 
is a hard-working officer, and has command of ten or twelve 
thousand of the sable element [colored soldiers] of the 
Union army, and appears to be greatly delighted in his new 
field of labor, remarking that he felt as though he was serv- 
ing his country by training these men to bear arms in de- 
fence of the Union and human right, and at the same time 
elevating the black race beyond the depths of degradation 
to which it for ages had been consigned by oppression and 
inhuman masters. "I feel proud," said he, ''to see, each 
day, these men growing up into manhood, developing w^itli 
wonderful rapidity their capacity to understand and com- 
prehend their natures as men and their duties as soldiers. ' ' 

I witnessed the men on duty and in their beautiful and 
w^ell-regulated camp, and can testify tliat I have never seen 
better conducted soldiers, white or black, anywhere. They 
rapidly acquire the drills and minutiae of soldiers and take 

(i39) 



440 Readings in Indiana History- 

great pleasure and pride in executing every detail. The 
Colonel informs me that none are below mediocrity, while 
several of his companies drill with extraordinary precision. 
He has recruiting officers through the States of Tennessee, 
Georgia, Alabama, and other States, who are constantly 
forwarding recruits, and keeping the Colonel busy muster- 
ing and securing quarters for them. 

They are to be divided into infantry, mechanics and la- 
borers, those not adopted for actual soldiers to be trans- 
ferred to one of the other divisions. I am glad to see this 
work progressing so finely. I regard the services of the 
black troops as of the greatest importance. I also conversed 
with Captain Elgin, formerly an enlisted man of Company 
I, 70th Indiana, and for a long time regimental postmaster, 
promoted last fall. 

He is laboring incessantly to teach the soldiers of the 
14th and 44th to read, write, and cipher. He says already 
one-half of them are reading in the Third Reader, many of 
them far advanced in the rudiments of Arithmetic and Ge- 
ography, while all can spell well. He has erected a regular 
school-house, and teaches five hours each day ; many of the 
men are already good scholars. The Chaplain takes great 
pleasure and spares no pains in his labor in educating these 
children of ignorance, and says that he has fully demon- 
strated the fact that they are capable of receiving the most 
polished education. He deserves the thanks of all the well 
wishers of the down-trodden race for the indefatigable ex- 
ertions he is making in their behalf. He says the preju- 
dices of the white race are participated in to a certain extent 
by the blacks ; they appear timid and backward in assuming 
their new position; recently a new colored recruit of the 
14th arrived at Chattanooga in company with several white 
Ohio soldiers ; they were placed in barracks, and all three 
slept together on the floor. When asked by his officers next 
day why he did not sleep by himself, he replied that he had 
two blankets, while the other two had but one each, and that 
they suggested to unite, that all might sleep more comfort- 
able, to which he assented, and remarked that it was a 



Indiana and the Freedmen 441 

mighty comfortable agreement. The prejudice which for- 
merly existed against negro soldiers, I am informed, is rap- 
idly dying out, even Gen. Thomas, who formerly insisted 
that they were fit for nothing but to garrison forts, now ad- 
mitting that they will make excellent soldiers in the field. 

148. Rights of the Negro in Indiana 

(From the Indianapolis Journal, November 10, 1866; address of a negro 

convention. ) 

To THE Loyal Votees of Indiana : 

Fellow Citizens: The time has come in the history of our 
State, when all of its citizens, irrespective of race and color, 
should be permitted to exercise equal rights. There are 
twenty thousand colored men in the State. We have always 
been loyal to the Government. We furnished our full quota 
as soldiers for the suppression of the recent rebellion ; how 
heroically and faithfully those soldiers fought, let the rec- 
ord of the 28th Regiment U. S. C. I. tell. We pay taxes to 

the amount of $ , yet we are deprived of some of our 

dearest and most valued rights. We are denied the elective 
franchise, and thus deprived of having a voice in the choice 
of our rulers. To deprive us of this is to disregard the 
cardinal principles of the Declaration of Independence; 
that immortal instrument declares that all governments de- 
rive their just powers from the consent of the governed. In 
the language of President Lincoln, we hold that every man 
should have the right to be the equal of every other man, if 
he can ; this w^e can not do if color is made the criterion by 
which to regulate the rights of men. 

We are aware that it is objected that we are too illiterate 
and ignorant to have a voice in deciding the great questions 
of State and National interest. But while we claim that we 
are equally as intelligent as thousands of other citizens of 
the State who do vote, we hold that virtue and patriotism 
are more essential qualifications in the voter than intelli- 
gence. If we have had virtue and intelligence enough to 
fight on the right side, certainly we will not vote on the 
wrong side. 



44^ Readings in Indiana History 

We are not asking for a social equality. Social equality 
does not exist in any country or community. The members 
of the legislature do not regard one-half of their constitu- 
ents as their equals socially. Such equality can not be 
brought about by legislation, but depends upon culture and 
is a matter of taste. Because men go to the polls and vote 
on equal terms is no reason that they should associate to- 
gether, unless they choose to do so. 

I'rom the report of tlie Committee on Statistics the 
following is abstracted. The report of the committee cov- 
ered fifteen counties, the other ones having failed to furnish 
statistics. For these fifteen counties, excluding Marion, 
there are 6,051 persons of African descent; males over 21, 
1,264 ; boys under 16, 550 ; children between 6 and 12, 2,251 ; 
orphans, 716; orphans of soldiers, 125; soldiers' widows, 
180 ; colored soldiers enlisted, 1,820 ; soldiers died in war, 
150; colored men holding real estate, 596; acres of land 
owned, 37,796 ; amount of taxable property, $912,314 ; taxes 
paid last year, $28,471. 

149. A Colored Sunday-School 

(From (ho Iu(liaii;i]iulis IhtUij ■Joiunal, August 7. ISOT.) 

Mr. S. A. Fletcher, Sr., one of our wealthiest citizens, 
who has many large and handsomely located farms near the 
city, conceived the idea of having a Sabbath school organ- 
ized for the benefit of the colored children in his employ. 
An experienced Sabbath school teacher and an ardent friend 
of the colored race undertook the arduous duties of super- 
intendent. Commencing last summer with a small room 
with a few scholars, the school has steadily increased in in- 
terest and numbers, until now there are about sixty pupils 
in attendance and a convenient Sabbath school building has 
been erected on one of the farms of their generous patron. 
A day school has also been in successful operation for the 
past six months. 

On Saturday the tw^o schools united in a picnic excursion 
to a beautifully romantic grove. A numl)er of our most 
respected white citizens participated in the festivities of the 



Indiana and the Fx^eedmen 443 

occasion. An hour or so was spent in roaming over the 
wildwood, and in swinging, and then, by request of the Su- 
perintendent, the Sabbath scliool formed in a circle, and led 
by the full rich voice of Mr. Olin of our city, the adults and 
children made the woods resound with sweet melody. As 
they sang in tones so clear and musical, '*ljet Us Walk in 
the Light," the thought arose, that after the long darkness 
of slavery from which the most of them had emerged, the 
peculiar earnestness with which they poured forth their 
gratitude in song, showed how gladly they would walk in 
the light of freedom. There were several good judges of 
music present who pronounced the singing excellent. 

The well-known pastor of one of our city churches then 
made a brief but eloquent address, congratulating the col- 
ored people on their citizenship, telling them that they had 
the same opportunities for improvement that the white men 
had, and no greater, and it rests with them to be or not to 
be counted with the great and good of the land. 

Another speaker followed, showing his deep sympathy 
for those who had so long been in bondage, and encour- 
aging them to make great efforts for their advancement in 
goodness and knowledge. 

But the oration of the day was made by ' ' Uncle Cas, ' ' a 
freedman. The white orators had addressed the Freedmen, 
but to the surprise of many, "Uncle Cas" addressed his re- 
marks chiefly to the white persons present. He spoke of 
the wrongs Afric's sons had suffered at the hands of the 
white man, and by many a sly sarcasm, worthy of a Scotch- 
man, and flashes of wit that would do honor to an Irishman, 
he pointed his remarks to the understanding of the white 
race. But although he forgot not the injustice his people 
had endured, he remembered and spoke with a feeling of 
deep gratitude of those that had sacrificed their health, and 
in thousands of cases, their lives, in giving them liberty. 
The speaker also thanked those that had shown them so 
much kindness in instructing them and in providing them 
suitable employment and homes for them since they came, 
in their ignorance and need, to our State. He said : " A year 



444 Readings in Indiana History 

ago these children and young people were as I am — they 
could neither read nor write; now the smallest of these 
scholars can read, and some can read and write well. ' ' He 
told the colored people to be faithful and honest in all of 
their dealings, and show themselves to be worthy of free- 
dom. At the close of the speech three prolonged cheers 
echoed far and near, and as soon as stillness reigned dinner 
was announced, and the bountifully laden tables were sur- 
rounded by all who could gain access thereto, without re- 
gard to color or age; and as they partook together of the 
dainties and substantials, it was impossible to tell by the 
flavor which of the ' ' goodies ' ' were prepared by ebony and 
which by snowy fingers. Lemonade and hot coffee were 
provided in ample measure. 

Great decorum was observed during the day. The after- 
noon was spent in various amusements, and all went home 
before the sun withdrew its beams, each one feeling a glad- 
ness in the heart for the new and better light that had 
dawned on the people of our much loved country. 



CHAPTER XXX 
INDIANA : A BACKWARD AND A FORWARD LOOK 

150. The Indiana Centennial — 1916 

(From Indiana Magazine of Histori/. March, 1912; article by James 

Albert Woodburn.) 

In a little over four years Indiana will be celebrating the 
hundredth anniversary of her birth. The birthday of the 
State is December 11, 1816. It was then that Indiana passed 
from her territorial condition into the sisterhood of States. 
She became the nineteenth State of the Union, and the sixth 
to be admitted after the adoption of the Constitution. When 
Indiana comes to set her house in order for the celebration 
of her one hundredth natal anniversary, she will, without 
much doubt, have a population of three millions — about the 
population of the thirteen United Colonies when they de- 
clared they were, and of right ought to be, free and inde- 
pendent States. A hundred years ago, by the census of 
1810, Indiana had a population of about 24,000. At the 
time of her admission in 1816 her population had risen, ac- 
cording to estimate, to 65,000, and four years later, by the 
census of 1820, she had a population of 147,000 souls. In 
another ten years that population had more than doubled. 
It was doubled again in another ten years, and in the two 
decades following 1840 the population of the State was 
again doubled, standing at the opening of the Civil War 
at 1,360,000 persons — approximately at one-half of what our 
population is today. 

The coming of that population to Indiana as a part of 
the great movement toward the West is one of the most sig- 
nificant chapters of American history. It was the upbuild- 
ing of a commonwealth from the wilderness. The men who 
lived in Indiana for forty years prior to the Civil War wit- 
nessed a wonderful transformation. The pen of the his- 
torian has not yet adequately pictured it. It has been pic- 
tured in parts, as in Judge Howe 's notable sketch of the es- 

(445) 



44^ Readings in Indiana History 

tablishment of the capital in the wiklerness, and the State 
and local historical societies have done something to pre- 
serve the historical materials of that day. The opening 
pages of Mr. HoUiday's Indianapolis and the Civil War pre- 
sent to ns some most interesting glimpses of the primitive 
days of nearly one hundred years ago in Indiana. And 
especially of this community [Indianapolis], when Coe and 
Blake and Ray and Fletcher, and others, were, in their dili- 
gent and public-spirited way, establishing the new city of 
Indiana, when the sale of town lots within the mile square 
laid off for what was called 'Hhe donation" furnished the 
revenue for building the Courthouse and the Statehouse. 
Can the imagination recall the little pioneer settlement of 
five hundred persons here in 1824? 

It is doubtful if posterity can ever be made to visualize, 
or in any true sense vividly to comprehend the wondrous 
change that was wrought in our Hoosier habitation in that 
fresh and productive generation. The men living here just 
before the sixties whose memories easily spanned these first 
forty years of statehood, found it difficult then to impress 
upon the rising generation the change that their eyes had 
witnessed and which their own hands had helped to bring to 
pass. They were youthful grandfathers who had hardly 
reached their three score years, yet their tales of the past 
would seem like flights of the imagination from old men 
who were seeing visions, did we not know how hard and re- 
cent were the facts of their pioneer life which they revealed. 
Nathaniel Bolton, Mr. Brown's predecessor in the State Li- 
brary of sixty years ago, thought it a marvelous thing in 
1853 that a man might start from Lafayette early in the 
morning, stop two hours for dinner at Indianapolis and still 
be in Cincinnati the same evening in reasonable time for 
supper and bed. Bolton, himself speaking of a time when 
he was still a young man of forty-eight, recalled his experi- 
ence of passing over the ground where Columbus, Ohio, now 
stands when there was but a single solitary log cabin on the 
banks of the Scioto at that place. The Indianapolis Ga- 
zette, of which Bolton was the early editor and publisher, 
brought out President Monroe's message in what was then 



Backward and Forward Look 447 

deemed quick time; lie had made an enterprising- western 
*' scoop" by bringing out the President's message in Febru- 
ary, only two months after it was submitted to Congress in 
December. That was but a few years after the cabins of 
Pogue and the McCormicks had been erected on Pogue's run 
and Fall creek. Bolton had witnessed the location of this 
capital city in the "New Purchase," when in 1820 Hunt, 
Connor, Tipton, Emerson, Durham, and others, selected the 
site of this primitive settlement on land so lately acquired 
from the Indians. That was sixty years before a circuit 
court was held in Marion county, in the days when grand 
juries sat on a log to hold their inquisitions ; when Ander- 
son town, lately the seat of government of the Delaware na- 
tion, was a deserted Indian village ; when the nearest post- 
office was Connersville, sixty miles away; when William 
Connor, the Indian trader, four miles south of Noblesville, 
first learned what it meant to have a government mail 
brought into his neighborhood; when, as in 1822, a United 
States mail was first established in this settlement, [Indian- 
apolis], and when such rapid progress followed that in a 
short time, as Bolton tells it, 'Sve had a mail from tlie East 
every two weeks unless high water prevented." These 
things were told by a man just entering upon middle life, 
while looking back over a brief period of about thirty years. 
He spoke at a time when Indiana had risen from a newly 
civilized wilderness to be the fourth State in the Union, 
while ten years later the commonwealth was able to furnish 
more than 200,000 fighting men in the war for the defense 
of the Union. Does it not sound like a grandfather's tale 
of impossible or exaggerated things ? Yet we know it to be 
only what has become commonplace narration of the growth 
of one of these western States. I use Bolton and his narra- 
tive of sixty years ago only as an illustration to remind us 
of a fading, if not a faded, past. 

Within the midst of this rising tide of new and expand- 
ing life toward the West, which seemed so recent to Bolton's 
eyes, but is so remote to ours, came the application of steam 
and electricity to modern life ; and one needs but little re- 
flection to enable him to recall the great domestic, commer- 



44^ Readings in Indiana History 

cial and industrial revolution wrought in the progress and 
life of the people by these powerful agencies. Cheap lands 
were bringing their thousands, but these discoveries and 
advances were destined to bring their tens of thousands. 
Our young State was then virgin soil, and while our good 
mother may continue for ages to come to bear children and 
to receive them hospitably from foreign parts to her fire- 
sides and her homes, it is quite certain that it can never 
happen again that her progeny will increase with such giant 
strides and in such proportions as was witnessed in those 
wonderful forty years prior to the Civil War. 

The Indianians who were but little past middle age in 
1860, could recall not only these strange and curious begin- 
nings, but also the denials, the hardships and sufferings, not 
to say the tragedies, of life in the pioneer Indiana settle- 
ments. Just one hundred years ago this year occurred the 
massacre in Pigeon Roost Settlement, not far from the early 
home of the Englishes in Scott county. When Bingham 
and Doughty of this city published John B. Dillon's well- 
known History of Indiana, in 1859, Zebulon Collings, a sur- 
vivor of the massacre, was still alive, from whose lips the 
liistorian had some account of the conditions in the country 
at the time of the tragedy. I cannot here recount the story 
of these trials. I merely refer to them to indicate by what 
hardships the soldiers of civilization were founding our 
young commonwealth, and how recent these events must 
have seemed to the older men when the "boys of '61" were 
entering upon the struggle for the Union. 

It is hard to realize for those whose memories go back 
easily to the days of Sumter and Shiloli that we are stand- 
ing today farther removed by a lustrum of years from the 
beginning of that great civil conflict than were the founders 
of the commonwealth who sat in 1816 with Jennings, Hol- 
man, McCarty, Noble, Maxwell, and others, in our first Con- 
stitutional Convention under the historic elm at Corydon. 
But it is so. That stretch of years when the State was in 
the making seems so large a part of our State growth and 
life that these later years, within the memory of so many 
men now living, seem yet hardly a fit subject for the treat- 



Backward and Forward Look 449 

iiieiit of history. But we have only to think for a moment 
to realize that the Indiana of 1912 is as g-reatly different 
from that of 1860 as was the Indiana of Morton and Lane 
from that of Governor Jennini^s or the elder Harrison. 
True, onr population has not increased with such propor- 
tionate strides since then ; l)ut impelled by the inventive and 
industrial progress of the world of which we nv a part, the 
progress and change in Indiana within these fifty years 
have been more marked, more in contrast with the past, than 
any that men had witnessed in all the years that had gone 
before. This age of electricity, the growth of our cities, the 
trolley car and traction lines, the telephone and the auto- 
mobile — these would have been as startling anticipations to 
the mind and eye of Joseph A. Wright or Robert Dale Owen 
as a single day's railway journey from Chicago to Cincin- 
nati to the expectation of the men of 1816. In material 
wealth, in industry, in comforts and modes of living, in con- 
veniences of life whether in city or country, in methods of 
business, in education, literature, or art — in everything that 
goes to make up civilized life, the progress of the last half 
century has been much more remarkable than that of the 
half century before. Within this period, it is obvious on a 
moment's reflection, are other chapters of the State's un- 
written history. Put these two half centuries of the State's 
life together and have we not a story of a State and of a 
people, of their times, their customs, their homes, their ac- 
tivities, their progress, and their changes, well worthy of a 
centennial celebration 1 



2!)— l()4;j 



450 Readings in Indiana History 



151. Indiana 

(From Indiana's Gift to the Battleship Indiana; poem by James Whitcomb 

Riley [1896].) 

Our Land — our Home ! — the common home indeed 
Of soil-born chikiren and adopted ones — 
The stately daughters and the stalwart sons 

Of Industry : — All greeting and godspeed ! 

home to proudly live for, and, if need 
Be, proudly die for, with the roar of guns 
Blent with our latest prayer. — So died men once. . . . 

Lo, Peace! ... As we look on the land they freed — 

Its harvests all in ocean-overflow 

Poured round autumnal coasts in billowy gold — 
Its corn and wine and balmed fruits and flow'rs. — 

We know the exhaltation that they know 
Who now, steadfast inheritors, behold 

The Land Elysian, marveling ' ' This is ours ! ' ' 



Outlines for Study 



CHAPTER I 

Try to form a mental picture of what is now Indiana when first 
visited by white men. On the map of Indiana in your geography, 
find the rivers named in the text. Write down a list of the peoples 
who claimed for their homes the soil of Indiana between 1700 and 
1816. 

CHAPTER II 

Indiana when Englishmen First Came, about 1765 

1. Face of the country — how it looked to white men. 

a. The forests — their appearance and extent. 

b. The surface — three well-marked regions. 

c. The rivers — four systems and l)ranches. 

2, Inhalntants of the country in 1765, 

a. The Indian folk. 

(1) The Miamis and their distribution. 

(a) Their earlier distribution. 

(b) Tribes and locations in 1765. 

(c) Manners and social customs. 

(2) Indian lore and tradition. 

(a) Pottawattomie story of creation. 

(b) Shawnee account of Indian origins. 
(8) Indian life and customs. 

(a) Training of Indian youth — how the 

Indian l)oy is declared a man. 

(b) On the warpath — the war budget and 

the return feast. 

(c) Ceremony of adoption — why and how 

an adoption is made. 

b. The French in Indiana. 

( 1 ) At Post Vincennes^location ; description. 

(2) At Ouiatanon — location; the country about. 

(8) At the Miami village — location ; origin ; the 
people. 

(451) 



452 Readings in Indiana History 

c. French life on the Wabash (eighteenth century). 

(1) Why the French settled here. 

(2) Agriculture: — implements, crops, marl\ets. 

(3) Homes and furnishings. 

Draw a map of Indiana. Sketch the rivers and lakes. .Put in 
the map the names of the rivers, lakes, French posts, and the Indian 
tribes in 1765. C-omparc \\itli the maps in the text. Write down in 
your notelxiok five pouits of difference between Indiana to-day and 
in 1765. 

CHAPTER III 

George Rogers Clark Conquers the Northwest 

1. The "Old Northwest" from 1765 to 1778. 

a. British in possession at Detroit, Fort Dearliorn. Kaslvas- 

kia, Vineennes. Locate each on map. 

b. Revolutionary War liegins and is in progress. 

c. Indians hostile to Kentucky settlers. 

2. Clark 's plan to conquer the Northwest. 

a. Jourue}^ to AVilliamsburgh — meets Governor Henry. 

b. Clark gathers recruits — from where ? 

c. Promises of land and money for his men. 

•i. Journey down the Ohio — fort built; desertion; pursuit and 
arrest of deserters. 

4. ]\Iarch on Kaskaskia — route; difficulties; capture of the place. 

5. Father Gibault sent to take Vineennes. 
(). Ouiatanon is taken for Clark. 

7. British recapture Vineennes. 
S. Clark marches on Vineennes. 

a. Despatch of the ' ' Willing. ' ' 

b. Hardships on the march. 

c. Capture of the town and garrison. 

1). Importance of Clark's vfork for the Americans. 

Write for your home newspaper a column article on the exploits 
of Clark. Be accurate in giving facts. 



Outlines for Study 4(53 

CHAPTER IV 
Indian Border Wars 

1. Why the Indians were hostile to settlers. 

2. Gamelin's mission to the Miami nation. 

3. Military exploits in the Indian country. 

a. Major Hamtramck 's march to Vincennes. 

b. General Scott lays waste Ouiatanon. 

c. General Wilkinson reconnoitres on the Eel River. 

4. Stories of Indian captivity. 

a. The Stephen Ashby family. 

b. The rescue of the Hope children. 

5. The Indiana rangers — purpose ; movements ; services. 

6. The climax of Indian troubles in 1811 and 1812. 

a. How the Indians were preying on settlers. 

b. The council at Vincennes — Tecumseh and Harrison. 

c. The Tippecanoe campaign. 

(1) The march to the Indian town. 

(2) The battle and its results. 

d. Savage attacks at three points in 1812, 

(1) Fort Harrison on the Wabash. 

(2) Massacre at Pigeon Roost. 

(3) Siege of Fort Wayne. 

7. Conditions near the close of the Indian Wars. 

a. In the Whitewater country — on the Twelve-Mile Pur- 

chase. 

b. In the Vallonia Neighborhood. 

c. In the Maria Creek settlement. 

What grievances did the Indians hold against the settlers in the 
Northwest? How did the British behave toward the Indians? 
Why ? What characteristics of the Indians are brought out in the 
Ashby story? Name the conditions in Indiana in 1812 which made 
the Indians a dreaded foe. Why did settlers expose themselves in 
distant homes in the wilderness ? What means of defense were pro- 
vided ? Can you tell from this chapter how names of creeks, towns, 
and counties were first applied ? Find the origin of such names in 
your neighborhood. 

CHAPTER V 

Name and describe, in their order, the three classes of pioneers. 
What did each class contribute to the permanent settlement of the 
country ? 

30—1643 



454 Readings in Indiana History 

CHAPTER VI 

Life in the Wilderness, about 1816 

1. Lincoln's Indiana home. 

a. Why the Lincolns came to Indiana. 

b. Where they settled. Describe the farm. 

c. The home and its furniture. 

d. How they lived; food, clothing. 

2. How the new State -was governed. 

a. Governor and Lieutenant-Governor — duties? 

b. Legislature — the two houses. 

c. Judiciary and law. 

d. Rights and privileges of citizens. 

3. The slow advance of civilized life. 

CHAPTER VII 

The Coming of the Settlers 

1. Whence and how settlers came to Indiana. 

2. How a new trail was opened into the interior. 

3. How settlers came to the New Purchase. 

a. How they crossed the rivers. 

b. Food and lodging — how obtained? 

c. Cutting a new ' ' trace. ' ' 

d. Hardships from storm and flood. 

Why did settlers show so great interest in the New Purchase? 
What Avas ' ' the center of attraction ' ' ? How is the original plat of 
Indianapolis marked in that city to-day? Put into your map of 
Indiana Whetzel's Trace. What was the difference between a 
"trail" and a "trace"? 

CHAPTER VIIT 

Clearing the Forests 

1. Why were the forests called an "enemy of the settler"? 

2. The operation of clearing: (a) deadening or "girdling" (b) 

felling (c) rolling and burning. 

3. Social side of "clearing" — the frolic. 

What was meant by "niggering"? Why so called? Why were 
the pioneers so ready to help one another? Should they have ac- 
cepted pay? Did they commit the "sin of waste" in burning so 
much good timber? Compare the value of the timber so destroyed 



Outlines for Study 455 

and that of the land on which it stood at the present day. Should 
they have left the timber to the present day, or most of it? 

CHAPTER IX 

Building the Home 

1. What the ' ' home ' ' meant to the pioneers. 

2. Location of the home near a spring or stream. 

3. Construction of the house. Describe the walls, roof, floor, fire- 

place, doors, windows, rooms, loft. 

4. Furniture : beds, tables, chairs, stove. 

5. Various kinds of houses. 

(a) The crude "half face camp." 

(b) The finished log cabin, made (a) of round logs, (b) of 

hewed logs. 

Find and bring into class as many pictures of log cabins as you 
can. What was the ' ' double-cabin ' ' ? Compare the log cabin with 
the sod house of the western prairie. What was the origin of the 
saying, "the latch-string is always out"^ Describe for the class a 
log cabin which you have seen. 

CHAPTER X 

Pioneer Farming 

1. How the pioneer obtained his farm. 

a. By "squatting" on unclaimed land. 

b. By purchasing land of the government. 

2. How the farm was prepared. 

a. Stock and implements — how secured? 

b. Fencing — kinds of early fences. 

c. Clearing and draining — why necessary ? 

d. Estimate of cost of new farm on the Wabash. 

3. Compare the value of prairie and timber lands. What ad- 

vantages has each over the other? 

4. Stock-raising. How the crops were fed. 

Compare the value of a farm in 1830 and of the same farm in a 
good section of the State today. What are the reasons for the dif- 
ference? Did the government sell good lands too cheaply? Why 
did not the early settlers buy whole townships at such a price 
($1.25 per acre) ? Why did the settlers at first prefer woodland to 
prairies ? Contrast the method then and now in use of feeding 
hogs for market. 



456 Readings in Indiana History 

CHAPTER XI 

Disposal of Public Lands 

1. How "squatters" secured their lands. 

2. How public lands were "entered." 

a. Location of Indiana Land Offices. 

b. Auction sales by the government. Describe the sale at 

Crawfordsville in 1824. 

c. Steps in locating- and "entering" land. 

(1) The preliminary outlook. Need of precaution. 

(2) Purchase at the land sale or land office. 

3. Danger from "squatters" and "speculators." How did the 

settlers meet the danger ? 

4. How the public lands M^ere surveyed ? 

a. Principal meridian and base line — locate. 

b. Parallel township and section lines, 

c. How the lines are marked on the lands. 

What is the difference between a "squatter" and a permanent 
settler? Between a settler and a "speculator"? Draw a diagram 
of a "Congress township." Number the sections properly. Write 
a surveyor's description of your father's (or a neighbor's) farm. 
On your map of Indiana, place the land offices of Indiana in the 
1830 's. Can land be obtained from the government today ? Where ? 
How? 

CHAPTER XII 

Transportation and Travel 

1. Early need of roads and canals. 

2. Lines of travel and transportation. 

a. Roads and turnpikes. 

(1) How a road grew from a Buffalo path, an Indian 

"trail," a settler's "trace," to a State road 
and turnpike. 

(2) Locate some early "traces": Wlietzel's, 

Berry's. 

(c) Early improved roads. Describe a plank and a 

corduroy road. How was money raised for 
building roads ? 

(d) Old National Road in Indiana. (Sec. 80.) 

(e) Discomforts of travel : Stage lines; taverns. 



Outlines for Study 457 

b. Rivers and canals. 

(a) Flatboating: how a flatboat is made. How it 

is used and how disposed of. Character of the 
flatboatraen. 

(b) River-steamboats : obstacles and how overcome. 
(e) Canal-boats: mode of travel and traffic. 

(d) Ferry-boats: uses? 

CHAPTER XIII 

Travel Stories 

Select the best story and relate it in your own way to the class, 
at home, before the school, or in your History Club. Visit an "old 
settler" and ask him to tell you a good story of travel in an early 
day. 

CHAPTER XIV 

Pioneer Society 

1. Occasions for social gatherings. 

2. Kinds of social gatherings. What was done at — 

a. The log-rolling? 

b. The corn-husking? 

c. The quilting-bee ? 

d. The shooting-match? 

3. The militia muster: purpose, drill, decline. 

4. Social experiments. Describe the settlements, social and relig- 

ious life, and industry at New Harmony under Father Rapp 
and Robert Owen. It what respects did their settlement 
differ from other pioneer settlements ? 

AVhat was the most important difference between the amuse- 
ments of the pioneers and our own? What was the "cornstalk mil- 
itia"? Who make up the militia to-day? 

CHAPTER XV 

Hunting Stories 

Was hunting a pastime, an occupation, or a sport? Explain the 
difference. Illustrate your answer from the stories? 



45^ Readings in Indiana History 

CHAPTER XVI 
Religious Life of the Pioneers 

1. The need of churches in pioneer society. 

2. How the meeting house was built. 

3. Pioneer preachers and preaching. 

a. Their self-denial and sacrifices. 

b. Their work among pioneer folk. 

c. How they "made a living" while preaching. 

d. How their preaching was received. 

4. The camp meeting. Where held? When? How long? De- 

scribe the camp ground ; the religious services. 

Wliy was the minister required "to work for a living"? Why 
was he not paid a salary? How did the pioneer preacher travel 
about among the different settlements? Wliere were the services 
held at first? What things have we to make Sunday attractive 
which were missing in pioneer days ? 

CHAPTER XVII 
Pioneer Schools 

1. Common desire for schools and "larnin'." 

2. The pioneer school. 

a. The building and its furnishing. 

b. Teaching — "loud" schools and "low" schools. 

c. Discipline — frequent use of the "rod." 

d. Subjects — the three R's. 

e. School customs : ' ' treating " ; " barring-out " ; " spelling 

down ' ' ; the ' ' master 's ' ' jurisdiction. 

3. The schoolmaster — his cabin; standing in the community; how 

paid? 

4. The spelling-school. (Read the Hoosier Schoolmaster.) 

What was meant by the saying, "lickin' and larnin' go togeth- 
er. ' ' Did frequent whipping make better behaved children ? What 
other ways of punishing unruly pupils were there? Wliat were 
the "three R's"? The "rule of three"? Why was so much atten- 
tion paid to spelling and arithmetic ? 



Outlines for Study 459 



CHAPTER XVIII 
Civic Ideals of the Pioneers 

1. Pioneer justice. 

a. The "circuit" court — why so called? 

b. Modes of punishment: whipping; jails; the "choke- 

trap." Describe an old-time jail. 

c. Lack of respect for the courts. 

2. Law-making. Explain "log-rolling"; "private legislation"; 

' ' combining bills. ' ' 

3. Elections. Describe the ballot ; method of voting ; questions 

voted on. 

What incident in this chapter illustrates how the pioneers adap- 
ted themselves to circumstances? What does "log-rolling" mean 
to-day ? Is private legislation permitted in Indiana now ? Is com- 
bining bills permitted? What evils are found in each of these 
early kinds of law-making? Ask your teacher to describe for you 
methods of voting before the ballot came into use. 

CHAPTER XIX '■''■' 

Health of the Pioneers 

1. Why sickness was common: effect of exposure, miasma, mos- 

quitoes, lack of medical skill, poor water. 

2. The common forms of illness— why were fever and ague so 

common ? 

3. Remedies: emetic, blister, bleeding, herbs and "bitters," cal- 

omel. 

Is sickness more or less common now than in pioneer times in 
Indiana? Why? How are mosquitoes a cause of sickness? De- 
scribe the symptoms (signs) of ague. What remedies are now used 
in place of "bleeding"? Who suffered greater hardships, the doc- 
tor or the preacher ? Who was the more useful of the two ? 

CHAPTER XX 

Removal of the Indians 

Read the story of the removal of the Indians and write a speech 
to portray the feelings of an Indian chieftain as he looks for the 
last time upon the waters of the Wabash. 



460 Readings in Indiana History 

CHAPTER XXI 

A State in the Making 

Explain the statement, "The period from 1836 to 1850 was a 
time of social organization." Give several instances for illustra- 
tion. 

CHAPTER XXII 
Internal Improvements 

1. The making of canals in Indiana. 

a. Why canals were needed. 

b. How they were made. 

e. Labor troubles on the canal works. 

2. Advantages of railroads over canals. 

3. How the people felt about canals and railroads — celebrations 

when opened. 

On your map of Indiana, trace the route of the Wabash and 
Erie Canal. Why did canals so quickly go out of use in Indiana t 
For what is the Wa))ash and Erie Canal used to-day? How were 
canals made to pass from a higher to a lower level, cross rivers, 
portages, and the like? Do you know of a canal in use in the 
United States to-day ? 

CHAPTER XXIII 
Banks and Banking 

1. The first State Bank in Indiana — where? branches? failure. 

2. The Second United States Bank— why no State Bank? 

3. The Second State Bank in Indiana. 

a. When and how chartered ? 

b. Central bank and branches. 

c. Where its capital came from. 

d. How it served the government and the people. 

4. Bad effects of state bank bills. 

What is the difference between the Old or Second State Bank 
and a State Bank to-day? Does a State Bank now issue bills, 
i. e., paper money? Why? Think of some of the ways a bank now 
serves the people. Ask your teacher to take your class to a ])ank 
and have it explained by an officer of the bank. 



Outlines for Study 461 

CHAPTER XXIV 

Political Parties 

1. When and why did a political party first arise in Indiana? 

Name of the party ? 

2. The political convention in early days. 

a. When and where the first State convention met. 

b. What the convention did. 

(1) Instruct citizens to appoint county (or town- 

ship) " committees of correspondence. " 

(2) Name State electors of the President. 

(3) Appoint a "committee of superintendence." 

(4) Invite General Jackson to visit the State. 

(5) Adjourn. 

3. The political campaign in 1840. 

a. The perils of a campaign. 

b. The old time rally — the procession ; the floats ; the ban- 

ners and "transparencies." 

What party to-day corresponds to the "Jackson party" in 
1828? What was the work of the committees named by the first 
State convention? What are the similar committees in a party 
organization to-day? What was a "barbecue"? Compare the 
campaign of 1840 and a similar campaign to-day. Wliat important 
differences exist? 

CHAPTER XXV 

National Questions 

Name the important questions before the people of the nation 
which the people of Indiana took up at this time. 

CHAPTER XXVI 

The Slavery Contest in Indiana 

1. How slaves were first brought to Indiana. 

2. When and how slavery was excluded. 

3. Attempt to bring back slavery into Indiana. Explain the "in- 

denture system." 

4. What Henry Ward Beecher thought of the Fugitive Slave Law. 



462 Readings in Indiana History 

5. The "Underground" in Indiana. 

a. Its routes in Indiana (Map). 

h. How it operated. Stations; conductors; destination of 

fugitives ? 
c. The "slave-catchers" — stories of rescues: Levi Coffin, 
Jerry Sullivan, Eldridge Hopkins. 

Why did many people in early days in Indiana desire slaves? 
How long did slaves continue to be held in Indiana? Wliy were 
slaves permitted to be held in Indiana after the Ordinance of 1787 
had forbidden the holding of slaves? How did the "indenture" 
scheme seek to get around the clause in the Ordinance of 1787 for- 
bidding slavery? Name some underground "stations" in Indiana. 
[See map.] What became of the runaway slaves after reaching 
Canada? How did the people of Indiana feel toward "slave- 
catchers"? Why? 

CHAPTER XXVII 

Indiana in the Civil War 

1. Indiana's welcome to Lincoln. 

2. How Indiana helped in the war. 

3. Indiana's "War Governor." 

a. Governor Morton's loyalty to Lincoln. 

b. His power of work and leadership. 

4. ]\Iorgan's raid in Indiana, (a) Object? (b) Route followed? 

(c) Defense of the State? (d) Effect on Indiana? 

CHAPTER XXVIII 
Life in Camp and on the Battlefield 

1. How volunteers were recruited. 

2. Doings at camp — soldier hardships. 

3. Soldiers in battle. 

4. Soldiers on scout duty. 

5. Soldiers on the march. 

Why was Indiana not prepared for the war ? In what ways did 
she help in the war? How did Morton find defenders to repel 
Morgan ? What was Morgan 's purpose in the raid ? Did he accom- 
plish his purpose? 



Outlines for Study 463 

CHAPTER XXIX 
Indiana and the Freedraen 

1. The negroes as soldiers. 

2. Education of the negro : when and how begun 1 

3. Civil rights of the negro. 

4. HoAv the negro has responded to his opportunities in Indiana. 

CHAPTER XXX 

Indiana — A Baclrw^ard and A Forward Look 

Write for your school paper an editorial on "Why Indiana 
Should Celebrate Her Centennial." Or make an oration on the 
same subject for the school contest. Or make a talk before the 
History Club on ' ' How Indiana Should Celebrate Her Centennial. ' ' 
Or ask your teacher to allow the class to hold a "Discussion" on 
one or the other subject on Parents' Day. 



Ind 



ex 



Adoption, by Indians, 34-35. 

Algonquin (Indians), 27. 

American State Papertt. extracts from, 

74, 79, 103. 
Anderson (town), 25. 
Annuity salt, 104. 
Antietam-, battle at, 431-435. 
Ashby family, capture and rescue of, 

83-87. 

Banks and banking, 363-366 ; bills of, 
366. 

Banta, Judge D. D.. 21, 25 : address 
by, 258, 282 : article by, 327, 329. 
History of Johnson County, selec- 
tions from, 157, 166, 172. 
Making a Xeighiorhood, extract 
from, 294. 

Baptists, 15, 355 : preacher, 300-302. 

Barges on Mississippi river, 43. 

Barracks, 126. 

Bean Blossom, named, 143. 

Bears, catching of, 288-290 : traps for 
(picture) 288; fight with, 289. 

Beckwith, H. W., (ed.) Indian Speeches, 
and a Treati.se on the Western In- 
dians, extract from, 31. 

Beecher, Henry Ward, view of fugitive 
slave law, 382-385. 

Bee-trees, 113, 129. 

Beste, J. Richard, The Wabash, selec- 
tions from, 220, 222, 228, 254, 341. 

Bewitching a rifle, 266, 273. 

"Big-knives," Kentucky settlers, 73. 

Blockhouse, IS, 98, 102, 112 ; fired at 
Fort Harrison, 125. 

Blue Jacket, Indian chief, 72, 73. 

Boone, Daniel, 19. 

Boulatigcric (French bakehouse), 45. 

Bradbury, John, account of log-rolling, 
173. 

Brandywine Creek, named, 160. 

Brown, E. R., History oj the Tnentii- 
seventh Indiana, selection from, 431. 

Budget, Indian war, 33. 

Buffaloes, 19, 28, 215. 

"Buffalo Trace," 18, 214-217. 

Burr expedition, 290. 

Butler, Mann, History of Kentucky, 
selection from, 131. 

Caliche, (French cart), 43. 
Camp life, stories of, 421-425 ; described, 
422. 



Camp m-eeting, 294 : described, 306-311 ; 
life at, 307, 311-313; religious serv- 
ices at, 307, 308, 311-312; at Vin- 
cennes, 314, 317. 

Camp Morris, 421, 422. 

Camp Wallace, letter from, 421-423. 

Canada, 15, 16, 395. 

Canal, Wabash and Erie, 18. 254 ; boat 
described. 255 ; opening of, 359-360 ; 
labor troubles on, 360-362. 

Canals (map) 356; versus railroads, 
357-358. 

Carbines, 275. 

Catholics, 15, 355. 

Christian (denomination) 355, (New 
Lights) 312. 

Church, 294 ; building of, 294-297 ; 
McKendrick M. E. (picture), 295. 

Cincinnati, swindling in, 366. 

Circuit, courts, 250, 333 ; traveling on 
the, 250-252. 

Circuit, rider, 294, 304 ; preachers on, 
314-321. 

Citizenship, 16. 

Civil War, 18 ; cause of, 379 ; Indiana 
unprepared for, 407 ; her part in, 
407 ; a volunteer in, 420 ; ideas of, 
421. 

Clark, (i. K., 18 : route to Northwest 
(map) 46; portrait, 48; prepares for 
expedition, 49-51 ; march to Vin- 
cennes, 60-61 ; retakes Vinccnnes, 61- 
63. 

Cockrum, Col. William M., Pioneer His- 
tory of Indiana, selections from, 87, 
97, 175, 199, 201, 231, 273, 288, 290, 
291. 353, 379, 395, 401. 

Coffin, I>evi, Reminiscences, selections 
from, 385, 390. 

Coggeshall, W. F., Poets and Poetry of 
the West, poems from, 148, 170, 257. 

Colleges, 378. 

Colonies, in the West, 6. 

Corduroy road, 195, 222. 

Corinth (Miss.), scenes around, 428- 
429. 

Cottman. Ceo. S.. article by, 210. 

Court, circuit, 250, 333-334 ; penalty in- 
flicted, 3.34 ; Justice Tongs', 335-337. 

Court house (picture), 334. 

Cox, Sanford C, Recollections of the 
Early Settlement of the Wabash Val- 
ley, selections from, 203, 237, 276, 
283. 2S5, 304, 334. 



(465) 



466 



Readings in Indiana History 



Crawfordsville, Judge Naylor at, 119. 
Croghan, Col., 36 ; visit to the Wabasii 

tribes, 36-41. 
Cuisine, (French kitchen), 44. 

Dancing, Indian, 35. 

Dearborn, Fort. 29 ; British hold, 64. 

Declaration of Independence, reading of, 
360. 

Delaware (Indians), 27, 73, 105, 138, 
139, 158 ; chiefs of, 115 ; threatened 
by Kentucky militia, 130. 

Delaware, Old Town, 65. 

Detroit, 36, 38 ; British hold, 64. 

Dickey, .John M., account of, 298-300. 

Dillon, John B., History of Indiana, 
105 : selections from, 111, 128. 

Dongola, bridge at, 395, (picture) 400. 

Driftwood (river), 19, 137. 

Duke, Gen. Basil W., History of Mor- 
gan's Cavalry, selection from, 417. 

Dunn, J. P. Jr., Indiana: A Redemption 
from Slavery, selection from, 41. 

Dutch oven, 151. 

Edson, Hanford A., Early Preshyterian- 
ism in Indiana, selection from, 298. 

Eel (river), 19, (map) 24. 

Eggleston, Edward, Hoosier School- 
master, 323. 

Eggleston, George Gary, The First of 
the Hoosiers, selection from, 323. 

Election, at Terre Haute (in 1851), 
341-343 ; officers of, 343 ; method of 
voting, 342. 

Ellsworth, Flenry William, Valle/y of 
the Upper Wabash, selections from, 
192, 194, 196. 

English, of Canada, 16. 

Esary, Logan, Internal Improvements in 
Early Indiana, selection from, 217. 

Evans, Estwick, account by, 292-293. 

Faux, W., Memorable Days in America, 
selection from, 277. 

Fern, male, 22. 

Ferry-boat, 161 ; "ad" for, 236. 

Finley, James, Life Among the Indians, 
extract from', 105. 

Finley, John, poem by, "To Indiana," 
170. 

Fireplace, how built, 175, 178-179, 186. 

Flag of truce, 68, 120. 

Flatboat, model of, 18 ; building a, 232- 
234 ; cargoes, 232. 

Flatboating, 175, 231-232, 237. 

Flint, James, account of "entering" 
land, 198 ; account of western tavern, 
226-227 ; account of camp meeting, 
306-311 ; account of court scene, 333- 
334 ; account of legislature, 339-340. 

Flintlock rifle, 273. 



Fordham, Elias Pym, Personal Narra- 
tive, extract from, 153. 

Foreign trade, fostered by national gov- 
ernment, 16. 

Forests of Indiana, 21-22 ; clearing, 
171 ; operation of clearing, 171-172 ; 
destroying timber, 172 ; log-rolling, 
173 ; lost in, 316. 

Fort, stockaded, model of, 18. 

Fort Wayne, 27, 29 ; Miami, village at, 
40; treaty of, 108, 114 (picture), 
132 ; siege of, 131-135 ; about 1812, 
133, 140 : canal from, 359. 

Foulke, William Dudley, Life of Oliver 
P. Morton, selections from, 410, 413. 

Freedmen, 439 ; education of, 440 ; 
rights of, in Indiana, 441-442 ; in Sun- 
day schools, 442-444. 

Freeman, John, case of, 382-385. 

French and Indian War, 41. 

French, fur traders, 20 ; life on Wabash, 
41-45. 

Friends (Quakers), 391. 

"Frolic," 173. 

Frontier rifleman, 16. 

Frow, 175. 

Fugitive Slave Law, 339 ; Beecher's 
view of, 382-385. 

Fugitive slaves, stories of, 385-400 ; ar- 
rival of on Underground Railroad 
(picture), 388 : picture of a, for hand- 
bill, 396. 

Gamelin, Antoine, goes to Miamis, 68- 
74 ; Journal of, 69 ; advises St. Clair 
to prepare for war, 74. 

George Rogers Clark Papers (ed. 
James), exti-acts from, 47, 50, 52, 54, 
55, 56, 59, 61. 

Gibault, Father, secures Vincennes, 54- 
55, gives absolution to Clark, 60. 

Gibson, John, Secretary Indiana Terri- 
tory, letters by, 98-103. 

Goodwin, Elijah, Life of Elijah Goodwin, 
selections from, 302 ; account of, 302- 
309. 

Government, local, 15. 

Grape-vines, festoons of, 21. 

Greenville, treaty of, 86, 97, 135, 211. 

Grist-mill, described, 292-293 ; tunnel 
mill (picture), 293. 

Hall, Baynard R., The Neiv Purchase, 

extract from, 243, 244, 264, 314. 
Hamilton, Col., prepares to drive Clark 

out, 56 ; retakes Vincennes, 56-58 ; 

conference with Clark, 62 ; surrenders 

Fort Sackville, 63. 
Hamtramck, Major, at Vincennes, 64- 

68, 87 ; expedition up the Wabash, 86. 
Harding, Dr. S. B., 6. 



Index 



467 



Hargrove, Wm., Captain of rangers, in- 
structions to by John Gibson, 98-103. 

Harmar, General, 64 ; defeat at Ft. 
Wayne, 74. 

Harrison, Col. Benjamin, 435. 

Harrison, Fort, 29 ; built by Harrison's 
party, 114, 119, 123 ; defense of, by 
Taylor, 119, 123-128, 140. 

Harrison. General William H., treaties 
by, 97 : at Council at Vincennes, 105- 
111 ; (picture) 107 ; at siege of Ft. 
Wayne, 129; incidents in life of, 373- 
376. 

Health, of pioneers, 344-351 ; sickness 
and exposure, 344-347. 

History Section, instructions of, 5. 

Hogs, to Cincinnati market, 155, 197, 
339 ; feeding of, 196-197. 

Holliday, Indianapnlis and the Civil 
War, 446. 

"Home Guards," 18; oppose Morgan, 
416. 

Hoosier, the, as others saw him, 235- 
236; characteristics of, 258-261; ori- 
gin of term, 261. 

"Hoosiers' Nest" (poem), 257-258. 

Hoosier Schoolmaster, The, 323, 325. 

Hopkins, Eldridge, rescue of free ne- 
groes, 401-406. 

Hopkins, Rev. T. M., Reminiscences of 
John Ketcham, selection from, 137. 

Hunting, stories of, 283-292 ; of game, 
283 ; of snakes, 285-288 ; of bears, 
288-290. 

Illinois, country, settlement in, 43, 47. 

Indiana, forests, 19, 20, 23 ; drainage, 
19 ; lakes, 19 ; soil, 22 ; surface and 
rivers, 23 (m'ap), 24; government in 
1818, 152-154; in 1818 (map), 153; 
"To Indiana" (poem), 170; location 
for river-trade, 231; in 1836 (map), 
356; in Civil War. 421; and the 
Freedmen. 439 ; centennial of, 445- 
449; progress in, 446; (poem), 450. 

Indiana Journal, selections from, 223, 
230, 357, 359, 360, 362, 367. 

Indiana Magazine of Ilistorii, 18 ; selec- 
tions from', 111, 119, 210, 225, 252, 
262, 271, 274, 329, 4 45. 

Indianapolis Free Democrat, selection 
from, 382. 

Indianapolis Journal, selections from, 
407. 420, 421, 423, 425, 428, 435, 439, 
441. 

Indianapolis News, selection from, 327. 

Indianapolis, plat of, in 1821 (map), 
165. 

Indianapolis Sentinel, selections from, 
415, 429. 

Indiana University Alumni Quarterly, 
selections from', 258, 280. 



Indiana University, founding of, 378. 

Indian captivity, stories of, 83-97 ; set- 
tlers' horror of, 83 ; of Mrs. Larkln's 
father, 100. 

Indians, Miamis, 25 ; distribution of 
tribes, 27 ; origins, 29, 30 ; life and 
customs, 31-35 ; education, 31 ; on 
warpath, 32 ; adoption by, 34, 83, 95 ; 
land cessions, 164; border wars, 64; 
hostile to Americans, 64 ; on horse- 
back (picture), 75; cruelty of, 83, 84, 
89, 99 ; in camp, 93-94 ; land cessions, 
97 ; attitude toward whites, 97, 98, 
103-104 ; bathing and' fishing, 101 ; in- 
cited by British. 123, 132 ; stealing 
horses, 142 ; ford of at Jasper (pic- 
ture), 215; remo.val of, west of Mis- 
sissippi, 352-354 ; hospitality, 372 ; as 
guide, 372-373. 

Institutions, republican, 15. 

Internal improvements, 357; (map), 
356 ; system in Indiana, 357 ; bill for, 
357. 

Irish laborers, 360-362. 

Iroquois, 19. 

Jackson, Andrew, 367, 371 ; resolutions 
favoring, 368 ; to be invited to In- 
diana, 370. 

Jeflfersonville, tavern at, 226. 

.Jennings (County), 23. 

Johannes (Portuguese coin), 38. 

Johnson County, 21, 22, 25. 

Johnson, Sir William, 36. 

Julian, Rebecca, account by, 135-137. 

Kankakee (river), 23, (map) 24. 

Kaskaskia, 36 ; capture of, 52-54 ; Clark 
writes from, 59.. 

Kemper, Medical History of Indiana, se- 
lections from, 347, 349. 

Ketcham, John, 137 ; experiences of, 137- 
144. 

Kethtipecanunk (Miami village), de- 
stroyed, 77. 

Kickapoo (Indians), 27, 37, 104, 110, 
139 ; assemble to hear Gamelin, 70 ; 
town destroyed by Gen. Scott, 76-77 ; 
town destroyed by Col. Wilkinson, 80- 
82. 

Knox, Fort (Vincennes), 64, 106. 

I/abor troubles, on canal, 358. 
I^fayettc, 19, 27. 
Land agents, 201-203. 
Land offices, 198 ; at Cincinnati, 337, 
.•;39. 

Land sales, 154 ; at Crawfordsville, 203- 
204; 283; in Whitewater Valley, 337. 
Land scrip, 201. 
Land speculators, 152, 201-203. 



468 



Readings in Indiana History 



Land warrants, 201. 

Lands, timber versus prairie, 194-195 ; 
disposal of, 198 ; public, how to enter, 
198-190 ; public, how surveyed, 206- 
209 : publio, question of, 377. 

Lanier, J. F. D., Life of J. F. D. Lanier, 
extract from, 36.3. 

Lawrenceville (Lawrenceburg), 23. 

Leavenworth, Seth M., speech by. 357. 

Legislation, in the backwoods, 339-340. 

Legislature, 339, work of, 340; Indiana, 
353. 

Lewis, B. I., article by, 225. 

Lincoln, Abraham, birthplace (picture), 
148; farm in Indiana (picture), 148; 
Indiana home described, 149-152 : 
moves to Indiana, 149 ; helps build 
home, 150; in Indiana (in 1861), 407- 
410 ; speech at Indianapolis, 409-410. 

Lindley, Harlow, 6. 

Little Turtle, 16, 25, 105, 135, 211. 

Log-rolling, 262. 

Madonna, 45. 

Map-making, 18. 

Maria Creek, settlement at, 144; life in, 
145. 

Maumee (river), 19, (map) 24, 25. 

Meridian, principal and base line (map), 
206. 

Methodists, 15, 312, 355 ; quarterly 
meeting of, 304 ; church at Kendrick 
(picture), 295; Wesleyan camp meet- 
ing, 306 ; preacher of, hunting slave, 
382, 383. 

Miami (Indians), 19, 20, 25, 69, 71, 72, 
73, 108 ; distribution of, 26 ; of the 
Wabash Country, 27 ; Gamelin's mis- 
sion to, 68-74 ; town destroyed by Col. 
Wilkinson, 80-82 ; at Fort Harrison, 
124, 127 ; sell lands, 353. 

Miami (Post), 36, 40-41; Hamilton at, 
57 ; Gamelin at, 71. 

Michigan, Lake, 19, 23. 

Michigan Road, described, 219-220. 

Militia, called out by Harrison, 112 ; of 
Clark County, 129, 130 ; called out for 
drill, 274 ; weapons, 275 ; commissary, 
276 ; drill of, 277 ; at canal celebra- 
tion, 359 ; company of at Whig rally, 
376 ; oppose Morgan, 415. 

Militia muster, 115 ; described, 274-275 ; 
the "Cornstalk" militia, 275-276 ; regi- 
mental, 274 ; company, 274 ; on the 
Wea plain, 276-277. 

Mississinewa (river), 19. 

Mississippi (river), 43. 

Morgan, Gen. John H., 18 ; story of raid, 
415-417 ; General Duke's account of 
raid, 417-419. 

Morton, Oliver P. (Governor), speech of 
welcome to Lincoln, 408-409 : the sol- 



diers' friend, 410-412 ; as a leader, 

413-414. 
Mulberry (tree), 36. 

Muscatatuck (river), 23, (map), 24. 137. 
Musquattimes (Indians). 37. 38. 

National Road. 213; described. 217-219; 

travel on, 252-254. 
Naylor, Isaac, account of battle of Tip- 
pecanoe, 119-123. 
Negroes, as soldiers, 439-441 ; rights of, 

in Indiana, 341-342 ; in Sunday school, 

442-444. 
New Englanders, 15. 
New Harmony, social experiment at, 

277-285 ; described, 278 ; famous men 

at, 283-284. 
New Orleans, trade with, 43 : Indiana 

flatboats at, 231, 233-235. 
"New Purchase" (Indian land cession) 

114, (map) 152; location of, 161; 

open to settlers, 213. 
Titles Register, selections from, 123, 206. 
Nineveh Creek, named, 164. 
Northwest, in 1778, (map) 46. 
Nowland, J. H. B. Early Reminiscences 

of Indianapolis, 161, 211. 

Ohio Falls, 50, 65, 78 ; desertion of 

Clark at, 50. 
Ohio (river), 19, 23, (map) 24, 25, 

27, 29. 
Ohio (State), 30. 
Ouiatanon (village), 26, 28, 36, 37, 40; 

capture of, 55-56. 
Ouiatanons (Indians), assemble to hear 

Gamelin, 70. 
Outlines for study, 451-463. 
Owen, Richard, 284. 
Owen, Robert, 280-283. 
Oxen, team. 42. 

Poteaux au terre (French houses), 44. 

Panther, adventure with, 290-291. 

Paris, Treaty of, 36. 

Parker, Benj. S., article by. 252. 

Parties, political, 357 ; convention, 366 ; 
organization of, 367-370. 

Passion, 45. 

Physician, 347-348 ; life of, 348-350. 

Piankishaw (Indians), 26, 38, 66, 67. 

Pigeon Roost, massacre at, 128-131, 140, 
448. 

Pioneer farming, 191 ; fencing, 192 ; cost 
of preparing a farm, 192-194 ; scien- 
tific agriculture, 196-197. 

Pioneer homes, 173-174 ; "half face 
camp," 175-177 ; a homestead, 177- 
182 ; a typical home, 182-190 ; location 
of, 182-183; (pictures) 148, 150, 176, 
178, 180, 185 ; the Carltons at, 246- 
247 ; of a preacher, 298-299, 300-301, 
303 : furnishings of. 318-319. 



Ind 



ex 



469 



I'ioni'rr iin'ju-liiTs, L".(4 ; stories of, l!!)S- 
:'.00 ; Jdlin M. Dickoy, 20S-:;(iii : ,1 I'.nii 
tisl iji'caclun-, ;500-:{(t:i ; Elijah (i(i(i(l 
win, .3(>2-.sn4 ; John Strange, :?()4-:f()C.. 

I'ioncprs. l.'i. (poomi 140; privation and 
hardsliip. !(!, LT.T ; life of, 185-137, 
li."i7 ; cImsscs of. 147; character of. 
147: whence came. ir>4; hospitality 
shown liy. i!4S-2r)() ; soci(>ty of. 257; 
social iiritherin.iis of. 2(>2-2(i4 ; reliijions 
life of. 2i)4-:!21 ; schools of, .■i22-:!:!2 ; 
civic ideals of, ;i;'.;i-:{4;i ; lieallh of, 
344-;i51 : pliysicians of. .''.47-35(1. 

Pioneer society, (lasses in. 2S1. :!57. 

l'irosii(\ Ci't. 

I'itt. I''ort. 30. 

I'lank road. 220-221. 

I'lantation. French, on Wahasli, 44. 

I'low, French, 42. 

Pollie, Charles, 144 ; .Tames, Reinini.s- 
ceitces, selection from', 144; .Tndge 
William, actount by, 83-87. 

Pontiac, conspiracy of, 30. 41. 

Pottawattoraiie (Indians. 2'.). Ki:!. IKi, 
128 ; captive meets Mi-. Asliby. SO ; 
at the siege of Fort Wayne. 1.'!.". ; 
treaty with, 219 ; removal of. .".5:;. 

I'reachers (see I'ioneer Preachers 1. 

Presbyterian. 15. :;55 : niinisier. 2'.».s-.'!(i(i. 

Prickly-ash. 21. 

Piinclieon. 44, 319. 



(^lakers, 15, 391. 
Qnarterly nn^'tin. 
304-305. 



1(14 : ])ri'nebin;;- at. 



Railroads. 37S ; versns canals, .'?57-35S ; 
advantages of. 358 : P>altimore an;l 
Ohio reopened. 423. 

Itally. of Whigs, 373. 

Kanner service, in Indiana, '.>7-l().!. 

Kai)|i. Father, at Xew Harmony. 277-279. 

"Ueadings," plans for using, 0. 

Recipe, for cholera infantum. ;'i5() ; for 
.yellow Jaundice, 351. 

Religious life of pioneers. 294-300 : exer- 
cise at camp meeting. .'107. 

Riley, .lames Whitcoml>. poem by, 450. 

Ripley (county), 23. 

Roads, "blaze," 152; stale, 154; turn 
pike, 155; corduroy, 195, 222-22:!; old 
thoroughfares, 210-214; old While 
water, 212; system of, in Indiana, 
212-214; revenue for, 213-214; two 
improved highways. 217-220; ])lank 
road, 220-221. 

Rom'ney (Mrginini 424; affair al 125- 
427. 

Sackville. I-'orl ( \'iii( in-ii'r; 1 57, 5S ; sur- 
rendered liy Ifaniillon. o::. 

St. Clair. (Jen. Ailhiir (Oov. .\orthwest 
Ter. I, (il. 72. 97; Major Ilam- 
tramck writes. (I'.). 



,S7. Cliiir I'ttjiciK (ed. by Sinilhi. selec- 
tions from, (;4, 0:s. 

St. .Iosei)h (river) 19, 2."!. 25. ( map ] 24, 
41 ; Indian village on. si. 

St. Mary's (river), 25, i:'>2, 133. 

St. Mncent (Vincennesi. 52; Hamilton 
retakes. .57. 

Salem. Morgan at. 415. 410. 41S-419. 

Schoolcraft, II. R.. littliiiii 'J'rihru of U. 
.s'., selection from. .'lo. 

Schoolhouse, 299; first, in Wayne ('(uin- 
ly (iiictnre), 322. 

Schoolmaster, .'12.'i. :!20. :'.2S ; Jurisdiction 
of. .'!20 ; cabin of, ;!:!! . 

Schools, taught by minister, 30.'{ ; char- 
acter of, 322 ; described. :!23-.'!27 ; 
"loud" schools, 323, 327 ; of the Eg- 
glcstons, 323 : discipline of, 323-325. 
328; customs of ("barring out," 
•trerting"), 329-332. 

Scott, <Jen., 18, 25; expedition to Wa- 
bash country, 74-78, 86. 

Stout duty. 114. 118. 143. 

Shaker I'r.-iirie. 19. 

Shawnee (Indiars), 30, 31, 37. 71. 7.".. 
124. 

Shawnee Prophet. 103, 104, 105, los. 
124. 127. gathers tribesmen together. 
112: .It battle of Tippecanoe, 120. 

Shelbyville. railroad celebration at, .''.02. 

Sheritf. outwitted l)y a woman, 337-339. 

Shiloh. neighboiliood. 294 ; meeting 
house, 297. 

Shooting-matfh, described, 204-271 ; the 
pri-'ses, 271 ; the terms, 271-273 ; the 
target, 272 ; the weapons, 273-274 : 
shooting otriiand. 205, 267, 272 ; shoot- 
ing with rest, 205, 207. 272. 

Si( kness. in the wilderness. 344-347 : 
kinds of, 348 ; treatment, 349 ; recipes 
for, 350-.".51 ; of Indians, 352. 

Slave hunters, 382, 383 ; outwitted, 3.90 
395. 

Slave indentures in Indiana Territory. 
379-382 ; story of .Vgnew's, 380-382. 

Slavery, 377, 378; struggle in Indiana. 
".79 : influence of, 380. 

Sloughs. 20. 

Smith. <). II.. Karl/i IikI'kiiki 'I'lials iiinl 
8kctcliex. selections from. 155, 250, 
337, 371. 

Siiiilh. <). II., in cam])aign. .''71-3.7".; 
makes siieech. :17]. 

Snakes, lulling of, 285-288; bites of, 
28(i ; traps for, 287. 

!'( Idiers. life of. 421 ; li>tters from. 421- 
429; hardships of (in Virginia), 42.".- 
425 ; on scout duty, 429-431 ; in bat- 
tle, 431-435; on the march. 435-438; 
negro, 4.".9 441. 

Spanish, at -New Orli'aiis. 10. 

Six'lling match. 327. 

"S(|(iallers." 97, 199-L'OO. 



470 



Readings in Indiana History 



stage linos, 157 : on National Road, 
218; some early, 22:5-22r> ; slow travel 
on, 225-227 ; schedule of, 252. 

State Bank, .357 ; of Indiana, 303-365 ; 
branches of, 363 : central bank, 363 ; 
capital of, 364 ; as governmvnt depos- 
itory, 3G5. 

Steamboat, 237; on Wabash (above Lo- 
gansport), 237-241; first on White 
River, 241-242; at Terro Haute, 238; 
at Lafayette, 238. 

Steuben. Fort ( .Teffersonville) , 68. 

Stewart, .Tames Ilervey, Early Settle- 
iiiciif iif <\irii,ll CoiDiti/, selection 
from. .'!44. 

Surveys of i)ul)lic lands, 206-200. 

Tarliell. Ida M., I/ife of Abniliain Lin- 
coln, Selection from, 149. 

Tattoo, 125. 

Tavern. 112, 121; old-time western, 226- 
228, (iiicture) 226; dinner at, 227; 
;i "bad" tavern, 228-231 ; in Indiana, 
245. 

Taylor, Capt. Zachary, account by, 123- 
128. 

Tocumseh, 18 ; in council, at Viucennes, 
105-111 ; leaves Vincennes for south, 
111. 

Temperance society, 264, 271. 

Terre Haute, 23. 

Territorial expansion, 377. 

Thwaites, R. G., (ed.i Emly Weatern 
Travels, selections from, 36, 173, 198, 
228, 292, 306, 333, 339. 

Timber thieves, 315. 

Tippecanoe, battle of, 20 ; Tipton's ac- 
count, 119 ; Naylor's account, 119- 
123 ; battleground convention, 373. 

Tippecanoe, county, 373, 375. 

Tippecanoe (river), 19, (mapi 24. 

Tipton, .John, account of March to Tiji- 
pecanoe, 112-119. 

Tomahawk, IS ; used in killin v a bear, 
288 ; sam'e of panther, 2SS. 

Township, "Congress," 208. 

Trace, into wilderness, 90 ; Whetzel's, 18, 
164, 157-161; "Buffalo," 18, 214-217. 

Trail, blazing in the wilderness. 157- 
161; system' of Indian, 211. 

Transportation, means cf (picture), 
210 ; by flatboat, 231-232. SM. 

Trapping, on Wabash, 88. 

Travel, to Indiana. 156; means of (pic- 
ture), 210: in Indiana. 243; by stage, 
225-227 : from the Ohio to the "New 
Purchase," 243-250: on tue circuit, 
250-252 ; on the National Road, 252- 
254. 

Tiirpie, Sen. David. Skcirlicx of My Oini 
Times, selections from, 177, 275, 300. 



Twelve Mile Purchase, life on from 1810 
to 1814, 135-137. 

Underground Railroad in Indiana 
(map), 386; arrival of fugitives on 
(picture), 388; southern division of, 
390, 391; station on (picture), 395. 

Vallonia, .settlement and fort. 123, 128; 
life in, 137-144. 

Vermilion (river) (map) 24, 26. 

Vincennes (Post), 19, 36-38; Father 
Gibault secures for Clark, 54-55 ; re- 
taken by the British, 50-59: Clark 
recaptures, 59-63 ; Hamtramck sent to. 
64-66; council at, 105-111; inhabit- 
ants petition General Harrison, 112; 
Tipton visits, 112 ; when settled, 154. 

Visualization in history, 17-18. 

Vogel, Frederick, articles by, 182, 202 
271, 274. 

Wabash and Erie Canal, 18; travel on 
254-256. 

Wabash (river), 19, 20, 23, (map) 24, 
25, (Ouabache) 36. 

Wallace, Col. Lew, 425, 426. 

Wampum'. Indian money, 67. 

War of 1812, siege of Ft. Wayne, 131- 
135. 

Warpath, Indians on, 32-34. 

Wasson, ,J. M., Annals of Pioneer Set- 
tlers, selection from, 171. 

Wayne, Gen., 25. 

Wea (Creek), 283; snake-killing on, 285- 
288. 

Wea (Indians), 67, 127; at Ft. Harri- 
son, 124. 

Wea (plains), 19, 26, 283-284. 

Western States, 15. 

Whetzel, Jacob, 157. 158. 

Whetzel's Trace, IS, 157, 101, 164, 166, 
168; blazed into the wilderness, 157- 
161. 

Whiskey, stake in shooting match, 264, 
269 ; antidote for snake-bite, 286 ; for 
treating school, 329-330. 

White river, 19, 23, (map) 24. 

Wild hogs, adventure with, 283-285. 

Wilkinson, General, 125; with Scott ex- 
pedition, 77 : expedition to Miami 
Country, 79-82. 

Wilson, Geo. R., History of Dubois Coun- 
ty, selection from, 210, 214. 

Winnamac, Indian chief, 109. 

Wolf, tales, wolves attack horse, 291 ; 
291-292 ; bounty for, 291-292 ; den, 
292. 
Woodburn, .lames .\lbert, article by, 445. 

Young, History of Wayne County, ex- 
tract from, 135. 



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